The Buyer's Journey: Recent Episodes
Commexis
Building a Better CAC by Commexis is a podcast dedicated to connecting the space between your revenue goals and sales and marketing initiatives.
Welcome to Building a Better CAC by Commexis: A podcast dedicated to connecting the space between your revenue goals and sales and marketing initiatives.
Today we’re continuing our look into the seven questions of the 3:1 in 18 Process. Today, we’re focused on the final question: What is your value proposition or purple cow?
Welcome to Building a Better CAC by Commexis: A podcast dedicated to connecting the space between your revenue goals and sales and marketing initiatives.
Today we’re continuing our look into the seven questions of the 3:1 in 18 Process. As a refresher, these are questions we ask our would-be clients first before we can truly begin helping them see marketing differently. Last episode we determined how our investment in digital marketing is determined. Today, we’re focused on question six: How is my investment in Digital Marketing allocated?
Welcome to Building a Better CAC by Commexis: A podcast dedicated to connecting the space between your revenue goals and sales and marketing initiatives.
Today we’re continuing our look into the seven questions of the 3:1 in 18 Process. As a refresher, these are questions we ask our would-be clients first before we can truly begin helping them see marketing differently. Last episode we discussed the third and fourth questions focusing on the Lifetime Value of a customer and the Lifetime Value ratio. Today, we’re focused on question five: How is my Digital Marketing budget allocated?
Welcome to Building a Better CAC by Commexis: A podcast dedicated to connecting the space between your revenue goals and sales and marketing initiatives.
Today’s episode continues a six part series focused on our 3:1 in 18 process, and in particular, the seven questions we ask our would-be clients first before we can truly begin helping them see marketing differently. Today we’ll be focused on two questions:
What is the Lifetime Value of My Customer? What is My Target Lifetime Value Ratio of my Customer?
Welcome to Building a Better CAC by Commexis: A podcast dedicated to connecting the space between your revenue goals and sales and marketing initiatives.
Today’s episode continues a six part series focused on our 3:1 in 18 process, and in particular, the seven questions we ask our would-be clients first before we can truly begin helping them see marketing differently. Today’s question: What is a Customer Acquisition Cost?
Welcome to Building a Better CAC by Commexis: A podcast dedicated to connecting the space between your revenue goals and sales and marketing initiatives.
Today’s episode begins a six part series focused on our 3:1 in 18 process, and in particular, the seven questions we ask our would-be clients first before we can truly begin helping them see marketing differently. Today’s question: What is my Revenue Target?
On today's episode we're honing in on the $40 million Facebook settlement that focuses on inflated video metrics for organic video posts.
Voice search and voice assistants are rapidly gaining popularity in the U.S. According to eMarketer, 111.8 million people in the US will use a voice assistant at least monthly this year. That's 39.4% of US internet users, by the way, and 33.8% of the overall population. If eMarketer's estimations are correct, the number will increase to 122.7 million users by 2021. That's 42.2% of US internet users and 36.6% of the population.
So, do you want to reach 42% of US internet users or over a quarter of the US population? Then it's time to learn about voice search SEO.
On today's episode we discuss BrightEdge's new SEO automation tool, the future of digital marketing automation, and introduce a couple new segments.
If you've listened to our last two episodes, you know the importance of the lifetime value ratio and what your marketing budget should be. But how and where do you spend that budget? On The Buyer's Journey, of course!* We breakdown the five steps of The Buyer's Journey and discuss some key strategy points for each step.
If you haven't listened to those episodes, go check them out! * The Buyer's Journey as a strategy, not our podcast (though we'll gladly accept the money).
If you're struggling with your digital marketing, this episode is for you. Today we focus on the Lifetime Value Ratio (LTVR), a fundamental formula for determining business growth and success, and how the LTVR can clarify your marketing budgets.
Digital marketing is confusing. With tons of options across a bevy of platforms, how is someone supposed to figure out what to do? On this episode of The Buyer's Journey we discuss the state of the digital marketing industry and help you achieve marketing clarity.
Digital audio listening is slated to beat non-digital by 2020 according to a new eMarketer report. What are the numbers and how will this effect budget?
Podcasters rejoice! Spotify is beefing up their analytics data for your programs. In today's episode we discuss the new features and what this means for your show.
A new report by Adobe Analytics shows that mobile podcast listening has risen 60% since Jan. 2018, and 25% of new podcast listeners have joined in during the last 6 months.
Google's latest search result update allows you to listen to your favorite podcasts right in the SERP page. What does this mean for podcasters? We discuss!
Google released an algorithm update that will help featured snippets stay fresh and up to date. Here's what you need to know.
A new eMarkter report discusses how much is too much brand communication? We discuss in hopes our inboxes will get a little less flooded!
DoorDash's horrible tipping scandal came to light and competing fast food delivery brands were quick to respond. We discuss this and more in today's show.
Pinterest's Q2 earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
A new report shows a discrepancy between what restaurant owners think consumers want from digital, and what consumers find useful.
A new eMarketer report shows that many consumers don't like personalized ads as much as marketers believe they do. We discuss!
A new eMarketer report reveals that half of US shoppers will abandon a brand after a bad experience. What can you do to curb this? We discuss!
Spotify and LinkedIn's Q2 earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
Twitter's Q2 earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
Snapchat's Q2 earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
Amazon's Q2 earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
Google's Q2 earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
Facebook's Q2 earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
Amazon Prime Day, one of the biggest e-commerce days in the year, is next week, and we have tips to get some of that attention to your business.
New Google changes are adding some great features for advertisers on ad platforms. We discuss what those changes are and how significant they'll be in today's episode.
eMarketer's latest report goes in-depth on the digital life of teens. On today's episode we discuss some key findings and what you need to keep in mind when marketing to the next generation of consumers.
Rand Fishkin has compiled shocking numbers revealing just how often Google searches result in a non-Google site and what that means for SEO going forward.
The IKEA catalog is moving from print to the digital realm on Pinterest. How successful is this move, and what's next for the Swedish brand? We discuss!
FedEx's express delivery contract with Amazon is ending, and the shipping giant now aims to focus on the broader e-commerce market. We discuss what this means for Amazon.
A new Google core algorithm update is rolling out this month and we've got numbers on the initial effects of the changes.
Facebook's Video Creation kit is getting new features that make resizing videos into multiple formats even easier, plus new saving and sticker options!
Podcast ad revenue grew 53% in 2018 totaling $478 million last year. But is advertising on podcasts right for your business? We discuss!
The widely panned New Coke is back for a limited time thanks to a promotion with Stranger Things Season 3! We discuss how the beverage was given new life for a marketing campaign in today's episode.
Amazon has announced that 10 million items are now available for Amazon Prime One-Day shipping! How are Walmart and Target keeping up? We discuss!
Google geo-targeting is expanding its advertising capabilities by allowing marketers to hit users when they do a search after they've left the location. How much of a game-changer is this? We discuss in today's episode!
eMarketer is lowering US Time Spend forecasts for Facebook and Snapchat while Instagram's time spend is expected to rise. We discuss in today's show.
A new leak reveals an unlimited delivery pass for Uber Eats at an affordable $9.99. Are subscriptions the future for food-delivery services? We discuss!
Facebook's community standards report is here, a look into how well the platform is doing mediating posts on the platform. We discuss!
Google's mobile search redesign is adding a black "ad" label to ads and favicons to organic search results. We discuss if this will effect your marketing!
A new report from TechCrunch shows that millions of Instagram influencers had their private data exposed from an unsecured database run by a social media influencer marketing company. We discuss the breach in today's episode.
There were a lot of big announcements for digital marketers at the Google Marketing Live 2019 conference, and we discuss the new ad types you'll be seeing in the Google eco-system.
Walmart's earnings report is here and there's some great results in the fight against the Amazon Effect. We discuss those areas in today's show!
Facebook is updating their algorithm, again, this time to push content from your close friends and most engaged pages to the top of the feed. What does this mean for your marketing dollars? We discuss.
Chatbots are becoming more popular, and a new study by Juniper Networks suggests they might help retail sales make $112 billion by 2023.
Google search results list podcast episodes within the SERP page, allowing you to click to listen to any podcast you find that's already on Google Podcasts.
Retailers are looking to woo pet owners as millennials outpace boomers in pet ownership. What are the big box stores doing? We discuss!
Google's latest machine learning tools takes your video ads that are 90 seconds or less and turns them into multiple 6 second video ads. How will this affect your ads? We discuss!
Our final earnings report round-up features LinkedIn and Spotify with both businesses experiencing growth. We explain in detail in today's episode.
Snap's earnings report has been released. The company's losses are beginning to slow, and their user base and ad revenue are growing. So, should you start advertising on the platform? We discuss.
Twitter's earnings report is here and the social media platform is beating many expectations. We discuss what this means for your ad dollars and more on today's episode.
Amazon's earnings report is in and the e-commerce giant is meeting and beating expectations. We discuss what this means for your marketing campaigns in today's episode.
Alphabet's earnings report is here and things aren't looking as good for Google as Alphabet would like. Some of the blame is on YouTube, but is that really fair? We discuss.
Facebook's earnings report is in and we've got a breakdown of everything you need to know for your marketing campaigns.
Instagram is testing hiding likes in Canada in an effort to reduce negative emotions for users on the app. But what does this mean for influencers? We discuss.
A recent survey from Google suggests that businesses may have to start paying for their Google My Business services. What can you expect? Tune in to find out.
Amazon has invested $800 million in one-day delivery services, and it seems like that fruit of their labor might be on the horizon. We discuss what this means for the retail powerhouse and other retailers in today's episode.
Smart speakers are massively popular and a new global forecast by Canalysis shows that their popularity will eclipse tablets by 2021.
Video is one of the most effective avenues for social media advertising, but how can you keep your content unique in a saturated market? We discuss 3 ways on today's episode.
LinkedIn is adding four new reaction buttons to for users to react to posts with. What are they and how do they differ from Facebook? We discuss on today's episode.
Apple is reportedly investing $500 million in it's game subscription service Apple Arcade. But is that enough to get it off the ground?
Macy's is expanding its in-store offerings to make them more experiential. Will these changes help fight against the Amazon effect? We discuss!
Pinterest is adding new conversion features to make running campaigns on its platform even easier. What do they do and how do they work? We discuss on today's show!
Facebook is prototyping a new newsfeed design, one based on the easily swipe-able Stories featured on Facebook and Instagram. But is this newsfeed best for the platform? We discuss.
Tired of the algorithm, Lush UK is saying goodbye to its organic social media presence in favor of chat bots, phone calls, and email. Many marketers think it won't last.
Tired of scammers and tricksters, Apple is introducing a new iOS feature that will ask if you meant to subscribe to that app or not.
Amazon is tackling logistics services with the brand-new Amazon Shipping. We explain the details of the newest competitor to USPS, UPS, and FedEx.
LinkedIn has a fake profile problem, but it's unclear exactly how bad it is and what is being done to stop it. We dive deep in today's episode.
Tax Day can be stressful for many, but H&R block devised a method to help relax: a periscope live-stream of a sloth. We discuss this and more on today's episode.
Amazon has a fake review problem, but most consumers have no idea. On today's episode we breakdown the crux of the issue and what to keep an eye out for.
eMarketer is revising their Snapchat growth forecast for 2019, saying that Snap will actually lose users for the first time this year. But is this the end for Snapchat? Absolutely not.
Walmart is redesigning its baby registry feature on the Walmart mobile app with new chatbot features to help auto-generate your list. Today we discuss the rise of auto-generated suggestion features and how this move tries to counter the Amazon effect.
WhatsApp's business app is rolling out on iOS globally, meaning that your brand can now reach customers on one of the most popular messaging apps!
Snapchat has announced other platforms, such as Tinder and Houseparty, can host Stories within their own apps. Plus, Snap is expanding it's ad network.
Loyalty programs are great ways to retain customers, but Reebok's latest encourages some fantastic Advocacy tactics, too! In today's episode we dive deep into what makes this program unique.
No matter how successful your email marketing campaign is, there's always going to be someone who wants to opt out. Today we talk strategies for improved email campaigns and ways to ease the opt out process.
Watch out Amazon, Walmart is introducing voice controlled purchasing to Google Assistant with some helpful additional features not found with Alexa.
Amazon is bringing a subtle change to their mobile app: video ads! We discuss the e-commerce companies slow roll-out and what this signals going forward.
Amazon is bringing a subtle change to their mobile app: video ads! We discuss the e-commerce companies slow roll-out and what this signals going forward.
eMarketer released a fantastic new report on marketing to parents in 2019 and we break down what the data means and how you should use it!
eMarketer released a fantastic new report on marketing to parents in 2019 and we break down what the data means and how you should use it!
A new eMarketer report shows B2B's best and worst habits for retention and advocacy strategies in account marketing. Today's episode is Part 2 of 2 where we breakdown and discuss the numbers.
A new eMarketer report shows B2B's best and worst habits for retention and advocacy strategies in account marketing. Today's episode is Part 1 of 2 where we breakdown and discuss the numbers.
Purchasing on Instagram just got a whole lot easier. Now, users can buy products from select retailers with just a few taps in-app. The team discusses what this means for Instagram and e-commerce as a whole.
Scam ridden ads, fake click-bait articles, and fraudulent advertisers aren't just bad for Google, they're bad for the whole industry. On today's show, we discuss Google's latest blog post explaining how they've banned over 3.2 billion ads, or 100 ads per second!
While many think out-of-home (OOH) marketing and digital marketing are at odds with one another, it's easy to make a strong advertising campaign mixing OOH and digital. Today the team breaks down some OOH marketing numbers and discusses a few strategies for success.
Experiential marketing can be a powerful tool in many phases of The Buyer's Journey, but there's also a lot of pitfalls to avoid. Today's episode is all about Cadbury's experiential marketing flop.
A new report by Edison Research shows that over the last two years Facebook has lost 15 million users. Frankly, marketers don't care. Tune in to find out why.
Amazon is changing up eCommerce shipping once again, now by offering to ship Amazon Prime member's packages on a set day every week. Who is this change for, and what does Amazon gain? We discuss this and more on today's episode.
Google has made a significant change to mobile search results: more image thumbnails more often! The team discusses how this could effect SERPs going forward.
Not every piece of content can go viral, but what should you do if something your brand made does? Josh, Len, and Matt discuss capitalizing on free publicity and brand awareness while also throwing Vans shoes around like baseballs.
Today's episode is all about using talent for a good cause. And that's just what many organizations and Twitch influencers are doing to raise money for charity. Plus, we talk about Twitch's place as an advertising platform and influencer marketing space.
Subscription services are everywhere and in almost every industry. On today's episode we discuss how retail subscription services play into the Retention phase of The Buyer's Journey, and the expansion of retail stores into the subscription marketplace.
In today's episode the team discusses the retail apocalypse. What is it? Is it as real as everyone thinks? And what are retailers' strategies going forward?
In today’s episode Len, Matt, and Josh continue the discussion about the Consideration Stage of The Buyer's Journey with Instagram and their New Ad Formatting for Branded Content.
In today’s episode Len, Matt, and Josh continue the discussion about the Awareness Stage of The Buyer's Journey with LinkedIn’s brand new video broadcasting/live streaming platform.
In today's episode we're making screaming fans out of customers. Len, Josh, and Matt discuss Advocacy, the final stage in The Buyer's Journey. Plus, the team reacts to a new study showing that only 1% of customers give feedback after a product or service purchase.
When you're running a business you normally can't just sustain yourself off of new customers. You need to make sure that your current and previous customers are happy. In today's episode we discuss the Retention stage of The Buyer's Journey, where your main goal is to keep your customers informed and in the fold. Plus, we discuss global trends for email marketing, a top tactic in the Retention stage.
Today's episode is all about the Purchase stage of The Buyer's Journey. What is it? How does it work? Listen in and find out! Plus, it seems like there isn't a single industry that millennials aren't killing these days. So, our resident millennials Josh and Matt discuss an eMarketer report on millennial buying habits and offer anecdotes and suggestions to retailers looking to capture this diverse audience.
Trust is an important aspect of any purchase. So, trust us to explain all about the Consideration stage of The Buyer's Journey, where brand confidence can be the key between a successful conversion and a wasted opportunity. The team also discusses Trustpilot giving more transparency to users when reading business reviews.
This episode is all about the first stage of The Buyer's Journey: Awareness. We'll make you /aware/ of the importance of this stage, as well as necessary tactics for maximum effectiveness in your digital marketing. Plus, Len, Josh, and Matt discuss Fortnite and the future of Esports advertising.
So, what is The Buyer's Journey? First, it's the name of our brand new podcast! Secondly, The Buyer’s Journey is the journey that prospective clients and customers go on when deciding to purchase a product or service. On our flagship episode the team gives you the road map for every twist and turn of The Buyer's Journey, and answers questions such as: Why is Commexis shifting our focus to this method? Why is it important? And why should CMO's pay attention?
Snap and Amazon are partnering to offer visual search within Snap, allowing users to shop for products simply by scanning logos and barcodes. Visit our blog for more: https://goo.gl/UPNxER
Sources:
Tech Crunch: https://techcrunch.com/2018/09/24/snapchat-amazon-visual-search/
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A newly reported Google and Mastercard deal gaves Google access to anonymous credit card data for better online ad to offline purchase tracking, raising some consumer data privacy concerns. Visit our blog for more: https://goo.gl/wF5PNL
Sources:
Bloomberg: https://www.facebook.com/business/help/953927331478764
Greg Sterling on Search Engine Land: https://searchengineland.com/opinion-googles-store-sales-measurement-data-deal-with-mastercard-not-deceptive-304747
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Facebook Groups are gaining access to Facebook pixel, which will help marketers better track user interaction and engagement in the popular page type. Visit our blog for more: https://goo.gl/RPcg73
Sources:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/business/help/953927331478764
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Today's Commexis Cast is all about experiential marketing; what works, doesn't work, how to measure ROI, and HBO and Bumble's interesting team-up. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/MbDFLr
Sources:
Kerry Flynn: https://digiday.com/marketing/moviepass-falls-hbo-bumble-tap-giant-spoon-market-staying/
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On today's Commexis Cast we discuss Party City, and other big name retailers, choosing to sell their products on Amazon despite worries that Amazon could undersell them with a 3rd party alternative. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/Pgcj5b
Sources:
Suman Bhattacharyya on Digiday: https://digiday.com/marketing/party-city-selling-products-amazon/
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It is Wednesday, which means it's time to talk about the purchase phase of the Buyer's Journey. Purchase is the third step, following consideration. During the purchase stage your user/client/customer has already become aware of your brand, and have done their due diligence to determine which businesses they may want to purchase from. Now, your user is looking at things such as: shipping cost, stock availability, estimated arrival time, estimated departure time, production time, etc. These will be the deciding factor for conversion.
As Suman Bhattacharyya points out in his piece on Digiday, the convenience, ease, and habit of purchasing on Amazon is likely the reason Party City has teamed with the e-commerce site. In addition, partnering with Amazon opens the doors to 2 Day free shipping for Amazon Prime members, as well as better reach to customers who wouldn't be able to reach a physical location.
However, this partnership isn't without its worries. As Phillip, Len, and I discussed in the past, Amazon isn't a stranger to requiring full inventories from certain brands lest the e-commerce site begin creating and selling versions of their own. To combat this, Bhattacharyya writes, "Party City designs and manufactures its own products, which it said differentiates itself from the range of offerings available in its category." He continued that Party City will only be releasing a portion of its product, and in particular the products that they exclusively manufacture, thereby controlling the ability for Amazon to create something similar.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
On today's Commexis Cast we cap off the the final day of Influencer Marketing week with a reminder of just how vital influencers can be in the advocacy stage of the buyer's journey. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/CWeHYP
Sources:
eMarketer: https://retail.emarketer.com/article/loss-of-consumer-trust-costly/5b60d04bebd40005bc4dc73d?ecid=NL1001
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Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis CEO & Managing Partner), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
On today's Commexis Cast we kick off Influencer Marketing Week Day 4 with a look into brands using meme accounts in place of human influencer marketing tactics, and some are finding a better ROI than expected. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/Y37haj
Sources:
Lucinda Southern on Digiday: https://digiday.com/uk/better-roi-influencers-meme-accounts-attract-growing-interest-instagram/
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Digiday's Lucinda Southern spoke to social media agency Cult LDN about campaigns their running for clients using meme accounts, in particular a campaign for streaming service Huya. Cult LDN is using meme accounts centered around "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" to push Huya's brand, labeling each meme with a Huya logo at the bottom and copy encouraging using the site.
Southern spoke to CEO of influencer platform Fanbytes, Tim Armoo, who said, “For 1 million followers, you could be paying $15,000 to a human influencer, and for 1 million followers on a meme account you’d be paying about $1,000."
Some of the benefits of using a meme account as opposed to a human influencer is the flexibility of messaging. After all, most influencers have a particular style or voice to their content, while meme accounts can be much more freeform. However, that also opens up potential brand safety issues. It's easier to tell what a particular influencer might do or talk about, but a meme account could share an unexpectedly controversial meme. In addition, Rebekah, Josh, and I aren't 100% certain on how much better using a meme account is, particularly when building trust and authenticity with an audience. While the content meme pages post are often highly engaging and relatable, without an individual as the "face" of the account it becomes difficult for users to relate to.
Furthermore, the increased ROI isn't surprising. When a meme account only costs $1,000 for a million followers, the requirements for a return is much lower than when spending $15,000 for a human influencer. Like I wrote about on Tuesday, meme accounts could be helpful for small businesses in the same way micro-influencers are, but I wouldn't go all in just yet.
Ultimately, it's up to your marketing team to do the due diligence of ensuring a quality influencer, whether that be a human or a meme account.
Today's cast: Rebekah Milsted (Commexis Social Media Manager), Josh Lyons (Commexis Social Media Intern), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast kicks off Influencer Marketing week! We discuss small businesses having great success with micro-influencers, and seeing increased ROI compared to influencers with increased followings. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/1h7AoJ
Sources:
Dinah Wisenberg Brin: https://www.forbes.com/sites/dinahwisenberg/2018/07/31/small-businesses-find-micro-influencers-a-good-marketing-avenue/#53a228b36f9f
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Dinah Wisenberg Brin on Forbes spoke with the team behind Mason Jar Storage, creators of "Mom's Mason Jar Rack". The team tapped influencers in canning, home crafts, and cooking verticals and found great success by aiming for micro-influencers with small, engaged audiences than influencers with a higher audience number.
Alon Popilskis, the team member responsible for the marketing of the product, said, "We decided to work with micro-influencers as opposed to larger-scale influencers due to budget as well as due to the fact that micro-influencers, even though they have smaller audiences, have a more engaged and targeted following, leading to better use of money spend."
MediaHub found that influencers with 1,000 fans had an 85% higher engagement "lift" than those with 100,000 followers. Brin writes that, "New York Times-owned social media influencer marketing firm HelloSociety, meanwhile, found that accounts with 30,000 or fewer followers are better for marketers, according to Adweek. Micro-influencers, often considered to be trusted sources, generate a 60 percent higher engagement rate than a typical HelloSociety campaign and are 6.7 times more cost-effective than big-time influencers, according to the report."
In the podcast, Phillip and I discussed how micro-influencer is fantastic for small businesses because the increased engagement gained by having a smaller, niche audience. The cost compared to other influencers, for example, makes a ROI actually possible.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook newest ad type: playable ads! These ads can feature demos of mobile app games that allow users a taste of the full experience. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/2TMo8w
Sources:
Ginny Marvin: https://marketingland.com/facebook-launches-playable-ads-tests-retention-optimization-for-app-advertising-245312
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Ginny Marvin on Marketing Land reports that new ad type was announced by Facebook last Friday at the ChinaJoy gaming convention, and has released globally.
Rick Kelley, VP of global gaming at Facebook, said in a statement, "With playable ads, advertisers can now give players a chance to experience a game in Feed before they install it, creating higher intent. And through two additions to our value suite, game developers can more efficiently reach their most valuable players — whether they’re optimizing for payers or for retention.”
So, what does this mean for marketers who aren't advertising gaming apps? In the podcast, Josh and I discussed how this is the first stepping stone for Facebook in creating new ad types for mobile app marketers. Marvin points out that Google is ahead of Facebook already. What I'm particularly interested in is the opportunity for the advancement of ad types into the realms of VR and AR. Previously on the podcast, Phillip and I discussed IKEA's Place app that allows for users to place furniture in their environment using AR technology to see if the color and style of the chair would be appropriate. I wonder if the same could be done in a more advanced ad type, offering a demo of a particular item without requiring the user to download a separate app.
Marvin also writes that a minimum return on ad spend (ROAS) feature will be launching the coming weeks, allowing advertisers to "be able to set a minimum spend to target users that the system determines are most likely to make in-app purchases." This isn't useful for gaming apps, but for other apps that require in-app purchases, as well.
Today's cast: Josh Lyons (Commexis Social Media Intern) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Twitter’s latest bot purge has dropped follower counts in the 6 digits for some, but marketers say they love that drop. On today’s Commexis Cast we explain why engagement is the number one metric for social media measurement, not follower count. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/i7DYAH
Sources:
Kerry Flynn: https://digiday.com/marketing/twitters-bot-purge-welcomed-agency-execs/
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Kerry Flynn on Digiday spoke with many media execs who are happy to see Twitter making additional efforts to quell bot accounts on the platform. Twitter initially began looking into their bot problem following a New York Times investigation that found many celebrities and influencers on the platform paying to have bots follow, like, and retweet their accounts and posts. In addition, questions of Russian use of Twitter in an effort to influence the election, much like on Facebook and other platforms, began to surface.
So, Twitter began banning bots. The platform also made significant changes to their terms of service, disallowing bot use for mass liking, retweeting, and following.
In the newest wave of bot bannings, popular accounts lost hundreds of thousands of followers or more. Katy Perry lost about 2 million. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey proudly lost 200,000.
Many influencers and brands expressed frustration at the loss of followers, but Josh and I explain that follower count isn't the most important metric for social media. Certainly, having a big number looks great and can be a fantastic showing of growth overtime, but engagement it does not create. Not to mention, many marketers had to scrape away data in their reports to accommodate bot followers. Now? Not so much.
Flynn spoke to Darnell Brisco, vp of accounts in entertainment at Fullscreen, who said, “This is the outcome I was hoping for for a lot of reasons. Do people lose a large number of followings, a big flashy number? Sure. But it makes the job for us as marketers easier because we are already having such a tough time trying to clean that data.”
"Marketing should focus on real results," Bobby Palmieri, CEO of Lilo Social, told Flynn, "and this purge will help that. I think there’s a huge gap between perceived audience and true influence, and this purge is the first step in bridging that gap."
Ultimately, even if your follower number (or your "audience number") decreased during the purge, your engagement should stay the same. If you're not creating quality content for them to enjoy, share, and engage with then your follower number is nothing more than a vanity.
Today's cast: Josh Lyons (Commexis Social Media Intern) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's announcement to show marketers more data in their Google Analytics and Google My Business profiles, including popular search keywords for businesses. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/n43BWX
Sources:
Laurie Sullivan on Media Post: https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/322170/google-starts-to-give-marketers-more-access-to-dat.html
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Laurie Sullivan reports on Media Post that the Search Analytics API in the search console will also allow users access to 25,000 rows of data per request, which is five times more than the previous 5,000 rows. Google has also released a guide on how to access this data, offering info on the default settings, searching by groups and by properties, and more.
Len and I also talked about Google’s history of keeping information close to the chest. There was a time prior to 2012-2013 where Google allowed users to look at every keyword their site could rank, but Google took that away in the place of pay-per-click. With the expanding markets of voice search and other forms of media, Google seems to be opening the gates a crack to allow some information to flow through.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis CEO) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Amazon's advertising working directly with some brands, leaving advertising agencies completely out of the picture. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/wD5ggS
Sources:
Shareen Pathak on Digiday: https://digiday.com/marketing/amazon-advertising-working-directly-brands-now-cutting-ad-agencies/
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Shareen Pathak on Digiday has an excellent write-up of the various ways Amazon is working with brands, in particular eCommerce brands, without advertising agency help. Lego in particular has found success with a direct relationship working with Amazon, even having their own landing page. According to Pathak, competitors are not able to advertise there.
Pathak spoke with Eric Heller, founder of Wunderman Commerce consultancy Marketplace Ignition, who isn't particularly worried for advertising agencies. “I’m not sure that everything old isn’t new again." said Heller, "I don’t think after Google we started hearing later that companies were dropping agencies.”
Our Paid Placement Specialist Jim does point out, however, that this had been going on for a while now. Google does it, Facebook does it, even HubSpot does it. But Jim is not concerned. He argues that it never works for the platform because they are so highly focused they can't diversify the portfolio of advertising options and channels, so if someone does well they crush it, if they don't they fail. Also, Amazon's advertising expertise is very limited to only eCommerce, and anyone outside of eCommerce would be hard pressed to convince to go with an amazon ad rep over a comprehensive full service agency.
Today's cast: James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the growing popularity of eSports and the vast marketing potentials waiting to be seized. Visit our blog for more: https://goo.gl/vWyC2W
Sources:
Mallory Locklear on Engadget: https://www.engadget.com/2018/07/11/overwatch-league-air-abc-espn-disney-networks/
Sahil Patel on Digiday: https://digiday.com/media/turners-esports-league-aims-for-growth-with-new-games-advertisers/
Lucia Moses on Digiday: https://digiday.com/media/fortnite-themed-talk-show-coming-twitch/
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The Overwatch League (OWL) will begin having its games aired on the Disney, ESPN, and ABC family of networks. The partnership began at the onset of the OWL playoffs and is planned to continue in a multi-year deal that will broadcast future seasons of the league on ESPN, ESPN2, Disney XD, ABC, and streaming services. This isn't the first time esports will air on ESPN or Disney XD, but it is aimed to be quite lucrative. Blizzard Entertainment, owners of Overwatch, are already quite familiar with the esports world having created and fostered the Starcraft 2 esports Community.
But what is so special about esports airing on television? After all, many millennials and the youngest of Gen Z (such as myself) don't even watch T.V.
Its the numbers. Turner Sports, owners of ELeague, have exceptional viewership numbers on TV. Sahil Patel on Digiday wrote, "On TV, ELeague averages 250,000 viewers per telecast. ELeague has also helped TBS draw new and younger viewers; to date, the league has brought in 10 million new viewers who had not spent any time with the network in the month prior to watching an ELeague broadcast. The median age for ELeague programming at 10 p.m. on Friday nights on TBS is four years younger than other network programming that airs on other nights at the same time."
ELeague's "Boston Major" tournament had a peak viewership of 1.1 million, Patel writes, which is inline with the viewership of the World Cup broadcasts on Fox Sports and Telemundo saw with peak concurrent live streams over the past month.
Finally, Inverse, the Amazon owned streaming company, is developing a talk show based around the hit gaming sensation Fortnite. Fortnite had a total of about 125 million players and generated $315 million in revenue in June, alone, and some top streamers of the game can amass 100,000+ consistent viewers per stream. During tournaments, top streamers such as Ninja can have 200,000 - 400,000 viewers at a time.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a problem facing many brands: Facebook's automated political ad authorization system is blocking non-political ads, some for keywords that are reminiscent of politics, and some that are not. Visit our blog for more: https://goo.gl/35pn3a
Sources:
Nikki Baird on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nikkibaird/2018/03/01/one-year-later-amazons-influencer-program-has-not-changed-the-world/#1ecae087b630
Amazon: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/influencers/
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The program quietly launched in March 2017 in an invite-only beta test for influencers with a high follower count, then shortly opened to submissions for approval. Influencers chosen for the program were able to have a vanity URL that linked to a storefront allowing users to purchase Amazon product curated by the influencer, who received a small percentage. Influencers can customize their storefronts and include YouTube videos and Instagram pictures of the products.
This may remind you of Amazon's affiliate program, which allows individuals who sign up to link to products on Amazon and receive a small percentage when someone purchases using that link. The additions to the program, such as the vanity URL, are certainly a bonus for participants, but not revolutionary. Do they need to be?
Nikki Baird, vice president of retail innovation at Aptos, penned a piece for Forbes analyzing how the influencer program has done for Amazon. The answer: it has neither succeeded spectacularly, nor failed abysmally. It simply is. Liz Gottbrecht at MAVRCK believes that incredible success isn't a necessary component for the program, but rather that the influencer program is but one more piece of Amazon's marketing ecosystem.
The program's continued existence as an expanded affiliate link still helps Amazon form relationships with influencers while creating and maintaining direct links to commerce. Both are fantastic for the ecommerce site, even if it's not a smash hit.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), Rebekah Milsted (Commexis Social Media Manager) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses a problem facing many brands: Facebook's automated political ad authorization system is blocking non-political ads, some for keywords that are reminiscent of politics, and some that are not. Visit our blog for more: https://goo.gl/pDn2L9
Sources:
Amy Gesenhues on Marketing Land: https://marketingland.com/facebooks-automated-systems-to-monitor-political-advertisers-are-blocking-the-wrong-ads-243760
Sarah Frier on Bloomberg: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-02/facebook-s-algorithm-blocks-ads-for-bush-s-beans-singers-named-clinton
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Following the revelations in the Cambridge Analytica scandal, as well as evidence of attempted Russian interference and influence on the 2016 presidential election through Facebook ads, the social media giant has been working to reduce the chances of such controversy while also making political advertising on the platform more transparent.
To that end, Facebook instated a political ads policy in May that requires individuals who wish to run political ads to be verified, as well as inform Facebook on the individuals or political entities that purchased the ad. Artificial intelligence is then used to detect individuals who are not verified, or who have not listed the purchaser of the ad, and are running political ads. These ads are then blocked.
Or, ideally they are. Amy Gesenhues on Marketing Land reports that it's not just political ads that are being blocked. Many ads that have keywords that could be ID'd as political are being blocked. Gesenhues quotes from a Bloomberg Report that a farming company, a hair waxing salon, and even Walmart had ads blocked for featuring the word "bush". The Facebook algorithm clearly misinterpreted the use of the keyword for a reference to former Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Advertisers in Clinton, Iowa and Clinton, Tennessee had their ads blocked, as well, seemingly for having an address located in the text.
Our own paid social team, Rebekah and Jim, have found that Facebook is also blocking ads under this criteria that don't directly state obvious political keywords. They both found that some ads are flagged for seemingly no reason, and that an appeal can often take days, weeks, or months. This error could ultimately be detrimental for a small or medium sized business, for whom Facebook doesn't offer fantastic customer support for.
Today's cast: James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist), Rebekah Milsted (Commexis Social Media Manager) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses publishers finding more success this year with Facebook mid-roll ads than previously expected. Is this a sign of more mid-roll ad to come? Visit our blog for more: https://goo.gl/xfqFVh
Sources:
Sahil Patel on Digiday: https://digiday.com/media/facebook-video-ad-breaks-signs-of-life/
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Digiday's Sahil Patel spoke to six publishers about their stats with Facebook's video ad breaks program. In essence, advertisers could place midroll ads in videos that were at least 3 minutes long, with at least 1 minute of uninterrupted video before the ad would play. This is one opportunity, along with Facebook Watch, that aims to help creators monetize their videos. While the program wasn't delivering much in 2017, the tide seems to be turning, however slightly, in 2018.
Patel writes that one publisher's mid-roll ad revenue "grew by 10-40 percent depending on the page from the first quarter to the second quarter of 2018, and is on track to make more than $10 million from the mid-rolls this year. A second publisher said Facebook mid-rolls are on pace to be a “double-digit-million-dollar business” for the publisher this year. "
An executive from a publisher said that the checks are consistently approaching six digits figures, which is a significant increase from 2017.
What I find so fascinating about this is Facebook's slow move towards a traditional TV like ad layout. As I mentioned in our podcast about YouTube increasing ad numbers on longer videos, a traditional ad layout may not harm watch rates when implemented slowly. Patel spoke to an exec Facebook Watch publisher who said, “TV has four minutes of ad time for every 11 minutes of content; Facebook Watch has a fraction of a fraction of that. They’re going to expand the ad load, but in the short term, they’re inching into it so they don’t piss off users and create scarcity for the inventory as it opens up.”
In that same YouTube podcast Phillip and I discussed how creators are intentionally creating their content to increase the likelihood of ads, showing that creators aren't against significant mid-roll ad placements despite the bad rap mid-roll ads get. After all, nothing hurts more than watching a 30 second ad before a video of the same length. However, in the era where YouTube and Facebook Watch are encouraging longer videos, perhaps mid-roll ads aren't as bad.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses three important influencer marketing concepts discussed at Vidcon: trust, authenticity, and creative control. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/4MQgm1
Sources:
Nicol Bitette on V by Viacom: https://v.viacom.com/vidcon-revealed-future-brand-creator-collaboration/
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Vidcon, a convention full of panels by creators and brands on how to make influencer marketing more successful, had upwards of 30,000 attendees; some fans eager to meet their favorite creators, some brands looking for marketing potential, and some creators hoping to say hello to viewers and brands.
Nicole Bitette on V by Viacom wrote about the panels during the convention, which ran late last month. The event's keynote featured Brian Solis, the principal analyst of Altimeter Group, who made a point that, as Bitette writes, "as few as 5 percent of brands are interested in building relationships with influencers—as opposed to signing one-off campaigns with them—according Traackr and Altimeter, a Prophet company."
During a panel, Benny Fine, of The Fine Bros fame, said that when it comes to choosing sponsorships. "[Authenticity] becomes how can you make something that doesn’t feel so branded that it turns your audience off while at the same time being something that feels authentic to your brand."
Many creators mentioned something similar, emphasizing that some brand deals can be created from brands that creator already supports. Matt Steffanina, a 31 year old professional dancer with 8 million subs on YouTube, said, “What am I always wearing in my videos? I’m wearing Jordans, I’m wearing a fitted hat. If you are a brand and you notice somebody is always tagging you in photos: that’s a great opportunity. People will be so much more receptive to something that’s already currently happening in their videos and so will the fans."
These kind of deals not only showcase authenticity, but can also build trust. Multiple videos created by the same creator rather than separate creators can be the start of a great relationship.
Creative control, of course, can be a sticky subject some brands don't want to hand completely over. For creators, however, it's a deciding factor in making a partnership with a brand. Often creators are the most tuned in to what their audience wants. Andrea Brooks, creator of the channel Andrea's Choice with 4.2 million subs, says that reading off a script of from bullet points doesn't make the greatest content. “I know my viewers and when I’m just rambling on about something for so long," she says, "I honestly feel like it’s counterproductive like out of anger they don’t want to buy your product because I made them sit through two minutes of selling this lotion."
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Ever wondered how to get a blue verified check-mark on Instagram? Today's Commexis Cast dives into Instagram’s new process for verification that hopes to stop scams that have cost some users up to $15,000! For more info, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/S4mR4h
Sources:
David Cohen on Adweek: https://www.adweek.com/digital/instag...
Kerry Flynn on Mashable: https://mashable.com/2017/09/01/insta...
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David Cohen on Adweek reports that the Facebook owned social media platform is shedding light on it's verification process to help ensure better transparency with brands and creators. The new form will ask "all accounts that are notable and authentic" for a full name, a list of usernames, and a photo ID to prove their identity.
While transparency is at the forefront of this change, the elimination of scams is another. Some users were paying anywhere from $1,500 to $15,000 on an Instagram black market to receive a blue verification check-mark, Kerry Flynn reported in September, then with Mashable. In a statement Instagram said, “We hope this new form will not only give people the opportunity to apply, but also help them better understand the verification process and safeguard them from believing false promises of verification from third parties.”
The new form is currently being tested in Australia for iOS users and will be coming to Android soon. We'll be keeping a watch on this new verification process as it continues.
Today's cast: Rebekah Milsted (Commexis Social Media Manager) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses three of the biggest announcements from Google's Marketing Live keynote in San Jose, California. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/8o2xuh
Sources:
Ginny Marvin on Search Engine Land: https://searchengineland.com/google-marketing-live-here-come-fully-automated-ads-campaigns-for-local-shopping-more-301746
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Ginny Marvin on Search Engine Land reported on every new feature that Google showed at the keynote, but our Paid Placement Specialist James Van Horn had a couple that he thought were particularly interesting.
The first announcement was Google's Responsive search ads. Similar to Facebook's Dynamic Ads, but without imagery, Responsive search ads allow brands to upload up to 15 headlines and 4 descriptions. Google's algorithm then selects the best headlines and descriptions for each individual user before serving them up. In addition, Google will allow brands taking part in this program to have up to 3 headlines displayed at a time, and description character limits will increase from 80 to 90.
Second, Google announced a new campaign type called Local Campaigns. These small business focused campaigns will allow advertisers to set a certain amount of budget and then allow Google to auto generate ads based on ad creative elements and locations extensive. Google then automatically optimizes the ad delivery across its network including Search, YouTube, Maps, and more.
Finally, another campaign Google revealed were Smart Shopping Campaigns. Marvin writes that these campaigns, "automatically optimize ad delivery across Google’s properties and ad networks to achieve the advertiser’s defined conversion goal value, such as revenue or return on ad spend (ROAS)." Furthermore, the goal of the campaigns can be changed between store visits or new customers.
Today's cast: James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discussed YouTube's latest initiative against conspiratorial and "fake news" content on the platform that comes with a hefty $25 million dollar price tag. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/8SZQq8
Sources:
John Glenday on The Drum: http://www.thedrum.com/news/2018/07/10/youtube-allocates-25m-enhance-credentials-authoritative-news-source
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John Glenday on The Drum explains that the initiative involves a push to have YouTube viewed as a more "authoritative" news source. You may remember the myriad of past controversies involving conspiracy content on the YouTube kids app, as well as their inclusion of Wikipedia excerpts beneath those videos on the normal site and app.
YouTube will be more thoroughly verifying content it considers to be "authoritative", but will not be removing content deemed conspiratorial. Glenday reports that Neal Mohan, chief product officer at YouTube, said, “By putting that front and centre, that’s one of the biggest things we can do to ensure users are getting access to high-quality information." Furthermore, YouTube wants its users to make their own decisions.
While Phillip and I are hesitant to praise YouTube for this initiative before we hear any plans on how this will be executed, the video hosting platform did include other policy shifts that we feel may be more useful. For example, the platform will offer a text feed on breaking news while news outlets work to create suitable video content. The platform will also have an information panel added to it that will display trusted local news sources, as well.
We'll be keeping an eye on how this YouTube change develops. $25 million is quite a lot of money, and is a sign that YouTube does care about this issue, but whether their solutions will work, or will go the way of Facebook's previous initiatives on the matter, is yet to be seen.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast breaks down what the Google's "Speed Update" means for their search algorithm and your rankings. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/FZiGdn
Sources:
Barry Schwartz on Marketing Land: https://searchengineland.com/google-speed-update-is-now-being-released-to-all-users-301657
Barry Schwartz' FAQ: https://searchengineland.com/faqs-new-google-speed-update-amp-pages-search-console-notifications-desktop-pages-289929
Google's Original Speed Update Blog Post: https://webmasters.googleblog.com/2018/01/using-page-speed-in-mobile-search.html
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The update that focuses on mobile page speed in particular, Google says, will only effect the slowest of the slow sites. For those with fast sites that think boosting their site speed even more might help, Schwartz has a great FAQ from January, when the update was first announced, that clarifies making a fast site even faster won't have significant changes under this new algorithm.
While it is extremely important, site speed isn't the only factor Google considers when creating rankings for pages. The quality of the content, as well as the relevance to search queries all play a role. In fact, Google confirmed in Schwartz' FAQ that even a slow site with great content may still rank about faster sites.
That said, if your site hasn't had maintenance or optimizing in a long while, or your site is out of date, you may be affected by this new algorithm change. You can check how your site is performing on desktop and mobile by using Google's PageSpeed Insights. If you're dissatisfied with your result, or find yourself frustrated by your sites slow loading speed, don't be afraid to reach out and see if we can help.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses an anecdotal report of YouTube's increase ad serving on longer videos, as well as creators tweaking their content length to better match YouTube's algorithm. For more, visit our blog: https://goo.gl/FUpTjx
Sources:
Tim Peterson on Digiday: https://digiday.com/media/creators-making-longer-videos-cater-youtube-algorithm/
Amy Gesenhues on Marketing Land: https://marketingland.com/is-youtube-serving-up-more-pre-roll-mid-roll-video-ads-243505
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Amy Gesenhues on Marketing Land reported that Dan Shure, SEO consultant and podcast host, found that 6 ads were being served on a 17 minute long YouTube video. The ads consisted of two skippabled pre-roll, two mid-roll ads a third of the way through the video, and two mid-roll ads two-thirds of the way through the video on the Maschine Master's channel. You can find a link to a video showcasing the increase in in ads here.
When Marketing Land reached out to YouTube for comment, they received the following response: "Our goal is to ensure ads are useful and relevant to users. The amount of ads that a user sees will vary based on a number of factors including ad preferences and the dynamics of auction and advertiser demand."
The increase in video ads isn't just being noticed by SEO experts, either. YouTube creators have been modifying their content to best react to YouTube's algorithm shifts. Tim Peterson on Digiday spoke with many popular YouTube creators who say they've been lengthening their videos for that exact reason. Not only does the algorithm prefer longer videos, as retention rates tend to be better with that content, but there's an increased likelihood of having ads placed on that video. Furthermore, users may be less inclined to bounce away from an ad halfway through a 12 minute video, while the same ad halfway through a six minute video would fair worse.
That said, Phillip and I discussed our displeasure with having six ads on one YouTube video. Phillip noted that he'd likely abandon the video if presented with that many ads. While I'm not so sure I would, as four mid-rolls ads reminds me a lot of traditional TV, I can't image investing that much into a video and then abandoning it. Perhaps that's just because I don't tend to watch traditional TV anymore (hello Twitch and Youtube) and therefore my alternatives would just be other videos.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses how a slow page load speed can increase bounce rates, hurt conversions, and general dissatisfy and frustrate an end user. For more information, check out our blog: https://goo.gl/Q7ukqs
Sources:
Chris LoRusso on Digiday for Nativo: https://digiday.com/sponsored/nativo-nativosbl-slow-death-latency-weight-dragging-publishers-bottom-lines/
Akamai Study: https://www.akamai.com/us/en/about/news/press/2017-press/akamai-releases-spring-2017-state-of-online-retail-performance-report.jsp
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Chris LoRusso, svp publisher solutions at Nativo, wrote a fantastic piece on Digiday analyzing an Akaim study on page speed loading. LoRusso reports that the study found, "a 100-millisecond delay in website load time led to a 7 percent drop in conversion rates. Meanwhile, while only 9.6 percent of users bounce when encountering an average page load time of 2 seconds, bounce rate skyrockets to 32.3 percent when page load times climb to 7 seconds."
Nativo accounts for much of this slow-down being third-party tracking tags. Phillip is quick to remind everyone that third-party tracking tags aren't inherently malicious, but can often build-up over a sites life time if not properly "cleaned" away. A business, for example, that has given access to their website to 2-3 different agencies over a couple years could have a variety of third-party tags that the agencies never cleaned out from those that came before. Then, the page can load significantly slower.
So, what is the solution to third-party tracking tags slowing down your site? Do spring cleaning each year to make sure every tag you're using is actually being used.
Finally, Google AMP and Facebook Instant Articles are other ways to increase site speed (one for landing pages, the other for publisher articles on Facebook). Phillip explains that both of these tools are incredibly useful to use, as long as they're being used in the right way, and brands and businesses should be encouraged to use them more.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook testing subscription based models for groups, allowing users to pay to have access to exclusive content and posts.
The new feature will allow group admins to create an internal subscription group with prices ranging from $4.99 to $29.99. Group members will be able to see descriptions of the content, as well as the price, to determine if they are interested in subscribing. If a user does, they will be given access to the exclusive content. If a user cancels their subscription, they will still have access to the group until the end of that month.
Facebook announced the test early last week in a blog post, and said the main goal of this experiment is to give group admins more tools because "they’re looking for ways to help them earn money to deepen engagement with their members and continue to support their communities. Many admins do this today by creating an additional subscribers-only group that sits alongside their existing group, and rely on additional tools to track and collect payments." With new group subscriptions, Facebook would allow admins to have this all occur in one place, and with the potential for Facebook to take a cut.
Speaking of which, Facebook has confirmed that they will not be taking a percentage of proceeds during the test period (though surely in the future they will). However, because these purchases are occurring through the iOS and Android app stores, Apple and Google will get a percentage of the subscription costs.
This test certainly opens up a great new avenue for influencers and creators looking to reach their audience (and get paid while doing it!). We'll be keeping an eye on how these tests perform, as well as how this could work for some clients moving forward.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Sources:
Facebook Blog: https://newsroom.fb.com/news/2018/06/introducing-subscription-groups/
TechCrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2018/06/20/facebook-subscription-groups/
Today's Commexis Cast discusses IGTV, Instagram's newly announced app that is hoping to go toe-to-toe with YouTube with long-form video content!
Instagram made the announcement of IGTV at an event in San Francisco, finally proving the rumor of extended length video on the platform. The announcement comes on the heels of the platform reaching 1 billion monthly users, up from the 800m monthly users in September.
IGTV will be a standalone app that allows all users to upload videos of up to an hour in length, far exceeding Instagram's typical video length of a minute. IGTV differs from sites like YouTube, however, because of the focus on full-screen vertical video. Users will be able to create channels to upload these videos and follow other user's channels in a similar fashion to YouTube. Upon opening the app, IGTV will immediately begin playing videos from followed channels (or algorithmically suggested channels), but users can still search for videos, creators, and hashtags via a search bar.
What excites me the most about this new app is how powerful it could be for influencers in the space. For a long while Instagram influencers and branded content makers have been requesting the ability to create longer form video content that goes beyond the 1 minute minimum. Previously, influencers who wanted to create longer form content would have to host it on their YouTube and hope people would migrate to that page to watch the full video. Now creators can host their long form content within Instagram's "umbrella" of content.
Similarly, brands can take of advantage of this by using long-form content to expand their audience on Instagram's platforms, as well as hiring influencers and branded content creators to make new, interesting content.
How creators will get paid on IGTV is still up in the air. For all of YouTube's faults and creator's many gripes with the platform, it still does pay. That said, Instagram has confirmed that ads are coming in the near future. How much of that will go to creators is unknown.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Sources:
Instagram blog + Thumbnail Image: https://instagram-press.com/blog/2018/06/20/welcome-to-igtv/
Adweek: https://www.adweek.com/digital/instagram-announces-a-new-video-app-to-directly-compete-with-youtube-and-snapchat/
Tech Crunch: https://techcrunch.com/2018/06/20/instagram-1-billion-users/
Recode: https://www.recode.net/2018/6/21/17487706/instagram-igtv-video-launch-creators-revenue
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's release of a podcast app for Android devices with plans for integrate artificial intelligence to offer transcriptions and other features.
Google released the new app, called Google Podcasts, yesterday on the Google play store (click here to get it now), and there is no word that the app will be released for iOS. According to Jon Fingas on Engadget, the app "will sync across virtually everything Google, including Assistant, Home speakers and search." Certainly an advantage over Apple's own native podcast app.
But that isn't the only potential advantage the app has. In the future, Google plans on integrating the app with artificial intelligence that will offer transcriptions of podcasts for listeners, as well as give additional relevant links and information based on the podcast and topic.
The release of a podcast app, and the additional A.I. functionality planned, signal the first step to Google putting a greater importance on audio and podcasts. Zack Reneau-Wedeen, product manager for Google Podcasts, spoke with BuzzFeed News, saying, “In the last few years, we’ve seen a huge explosion in the creativity, variety, and the quality of podcasts available."
Google will also be working with an independent global advisory board and industry experts on a plan to increase the diversity in podcasting. Buzzfeed News' Pranav Dixit wrote that this initiative aims to "bring in more creators from underrepresented backgrounds such as women, people of color, and people from other countries into podcasting." Reneau-Weeden told Buzzfeed News, "When we talk about doubling the size of the podcast listening population worldwide, the growth needs to come from around the world where most of the opportunity is going to be. It can’t only come from America.”
Phillip and Matt are both looking forward to seeing how the artificial intelligence features work on the new app, and are also excited to see how Google's podcast diversity initiative goes.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Sources:
Jon Fingas on Engadget: https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/19/google-launches-dedicated-podcast-app-for-android/
Pranav Dixit on Buzzfeed News: https://www.buzzfeed.com/pranavdixit/google-new-podcast-app-diversity?utm_term=.ykgoZPB5GL#.uk0Vm32vqb
Today's Commexis Cast discusses brands using Instagram to improve their audience retention and engagement on Facebook.
Tim Peterson reported on Digiday that media companies such as First Media were boosting their Facebook audiences using Instagram as a way to offset the loss of engagement from Facebook's January algorithm change. In particular, First Media cross-posted Instagram stories to Facebook Stories on their So Yummy and Blusher accounts. Peterson writes that within 10 days, "So Yummy was increasing its Instagram followers by 34 percent to 6,358 new followers a day from what it was adding previously, said Yuval Rechter, First Media’s head of digital. On the same basis, Blusher saw its average daily additions increase by 284 percent to 2,301 new followers."
Swipe-up links, too, offered significant referral traffic even compared to Facebook instant-articles. First Media say that some links received "up to 40,000 swipe-ups."
CNN, too, had been increasing its use of Instagram Stories, hiring a new video producer to create stories once a day. While CNN did not say that cross-posting stories led to an increase in followers, the company did say that the viewership numbers weren't insignificant and the content likely reached a different audience than that on Facebook.
Ultimately, Phillip points out in the podcast that consistency in content and smart hashtag use are going to help smaller brands reach their intended audiences on both platforms. Big media companies have the following and clout to create these massive followings, and the only way to slowly begin to do so with your brand is to be consistent.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Sources:
Tim Peterson Digiday Piece: https://digiday.com/media/publishers-bridging-instagram-facebook-audiences/
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Pinterest's expansion of their Pinterest Marketing Partners Program with partnerships of seven new creative services companies.
Pinterest's Business Blog says that brands will be able to work with Popular Pays, QuickFrame, Shutterstock Custom, Social Native, Vidmob, Vidsy, and The Online Studio when looking to craft video assets for the platform. "These Creative PMPs have built solutions through the Pinterest API that will give brands access to creative development tools that make it easy to build, manage and launch engaging Pins. Marketing Partners can help with everything from developing high-quality creative content to managing complex campaigns to refining targeting and measuring results," Pinterest said in their post.
Phillip and Matt talk about the growth Pinterest has experienced in their advertising platform, showcasing a 50% boost year-over-year in small and medium sized businesses advertising on the platform.
We're going to be keeping an eye on Pinterest going forward. It's definitely an avenue we want to explore with specific clients, especially those that are targeting Millennials and Gen Z.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Pinterest Blog: https://business.pinterest.com/en/blog/pinterest-expands-marketing-partners-with-creative-specialty
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's brand new ad feedback system, which allows users who have clicked on an ad to rate their satisfaction with that business' services and products, and could result in a business being banned from advertising on the platform if they receive enough negative feedback.
Here's how the system works: A user clicks on an ad. Sometime in the near future, a Facebook notification will ask the user to leave feedback on the service of that business. Users can choose one of three smiley face emoji that showcase satisfaction, neutrality, or dissatisfaction. Then, users pick whether product quality or shipping speed left the user the most satisfied or unsatisfied (depending on their prior choice), as well as the option to leave some anonymous feedback.
Businesses that receive a large amount of negative feedback will have their feedback shown to them in a separate dashboard. In a blog post Facebook described this process: "We share feedback directly with businesses that receive high volumes of negative feedback and give them a chance to improve before taking further action. We give them guidance on how to improve customer satisfaction and better meet customer expectations. This could mean setting clear expectations about shipping speed upfront or providing more transparency about return policies."
Ultimately, if a business receives a vast amount of negative feedback without making any changes, they may have their ads reduced or outright banned on the platform.
The new feature, announced by Facebook on Tuesday, aims to reduce false or misleading advertising. Facebook said that user frustration towards "ads that quote inaccurate shipping times or that misrepresent products" was the main influence on this new ad policy, though surely it will also help reduce any spam/scam advertisements that have slipped through the cracks, as well. Facebook hopes "this tool will give people more confidence in the businesses they interact with and help hold businesses accountable for customer experiences they provide."
While none of our clients will be affected by this new change, we'll be keeping an eye on this new feedback system as it continues to develop. There doesn't seem to be much information on whether individuals who have clicked on an ad, but haven't purchased a product or service from that company, will be able to give feedback, though it certainly seems possible on the platform. It is likely that Facebook will be using their regular tracking and cookie information to confirm purchases, but until we know more we'll be monitoring this new system.
Today's cast: Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Facebook Blog: https://newsroom.fb.com/news/2018/06/improving-customer-service/
Today's Commexis Cast discusses the reactions to IHOP's rebranding to IHOb, the International House of Burgers, and two major lessons every marketer and brand can learn from this change.
HOP has rebranded into IHOb for a limited time. A week's long speculation on what the "b" in the name stood crafted theories suggesting "breakfast" or "bacon". But alas, it was burgers. And it didn't take long for other social media accounts to begin tweeting about the odd change. But what can we learn from IHOb's latest marketing move?
- Don't be afraid to try something radically different.
Doing something different is scary. It's risky. And risk to many brand managers can be the death knell to a great idea. But there are times when risk can really pay off. For IHOb, their goal was to bring attention to themselves and their burgers, and they achieved so much more than that. A weeks worth of speculation. Branded twitter accounts throwing shade. Guess what? IHOb got attention. IHOb got eyes on their product. We'll have to see how their return on investment is following this, but I'm sure their impressions and engagements are high.
- Don't be afraid to jump on a great opportunity.
Everyone had something to say about IHOb's rebranding. While your brand might not have the charisma to tweet like Wendy's, that doesn't mean your brand can't engage in the conversations and trending moments happening in social media. By interacting in the community your brand can begin to establish itself as a thought leader, while also gaining additional exposure.
And hey, it seems like it's paying off for IHOb, anyway.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses what's on every marketer's mind: how has the GDPR has affected ad prices in the EU and the US following the May 25 "launch" date.
eMarketer's Ross Benes explains in depth the rise of ad prices in the US, and their fall in EU, following the GDPR. Benes writes, "Ezoic analyzed CPMs for 126 different publishers, to see how the GDPR may have affected their ad prices. An equal number of publishers in the study—42 each—came from the US, the EU and the rest of the world (excluding Asia). Ezoic found that while ad prices dropped in the EU following the GDPR enforcement date of May 25, they actually rose in the US."
Our Paid Placement Specialist James Van Horn explained that this rise in prices is expected following the new regulations. Many sites who cannot meet the new rules are stopping advertising, or shutting down completely, which closes the amount of ad space available. Therefore, the cost of placing ad rises. In the case of Facebook, it is likely that they're hiring data officers to ensure that compliance is met, as many other sites may be doing, and that rise in cost may be to temper that expense.
Benes also wrote about the increased dissatisfaction consumers have with companies selling their data, or using their data to target ads toward them. A May Salithru survey showed that a majority of the 2000 respondents were "very uncomfortable with brands buying and selling their data." This comes as little surprise given the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal that came to light in March.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Sources:
Ross Benes' GDPR Ad Price Piece: https://www.emarketer.com/content/the-gdpr-isn-t-hurting-us-ad-prices?ecid=NL1015
Ross Benes' GDPR Consumer Feelings on Data: https://www.emarketer.com/content/most-users-are-very-uncomfortable-with-brands-selling-their-data?ecid=NL1015
Today's Commexis Cast discusses the latest improvements to Facebook Live including cross-posting functionality and a rewind feature! The news comes from a blog post by Facebook Product Manager Matt Labunka.
The major announcement of these updates is the live cross-posting ability. Now, brands can have a Facebook Live stream to their own brand page, a sponsors page, and much more. Labunka gives an example of the World Surf League that streamed a competition on their page, while a sponsor and an athlete cross-posted it on their pages. By doing so, the World Surf League was able to acquire "more than 1.5M views, 4,500 Shares and over 538K minutes watched."
Multishow, a Brazilian media network, "saw 40% more retention on this broadcast than other live videos in the past 90 days, and interactions on the video were 2x more than what we typically see on Live videos."
One of the biggest advantages Facebook has over other streaming platforms, like Twitch and YouTube Live, is their massive user base. We've discussed in the past that Facebook has been focusing on user engagement on the Newsfeed, and Facebook has pinpointed Facebook Live as an incredible example of engagement and audience retention.
On the other hand, one of the biggest disadvantages of Facebook Live in the past has been some logistical issues in setting up streams for people and brands who constantly use the Facebook Live API. To that end, Facebook Live will be adding persistent stream keys for those that do heavily use the platform. Previously, stream keys reset for every live stream which can lead to problems and additional steps prior to each stream. This will help planning streams and cross-posting by allowing keys to be sent in advance.
Finally, Facebook will be adding a rewind feature for viewers watching live streams. Simply put, this will allow users to backtrack in a live stream to watch prior content. While not a game changing improvement, it certainly adds some nice quality of life.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Instagram's silently releasing in-app payment options for some US and UK users and brands. As Tech Crunch's Josh Constine first reported from a reader tip by Genady Okrain, Instagram has updated their app to include payment options. Users can register a credit or debit card to their profile, and then crate a pin number for added security.
You can read Constine's piece here: https://techcrunch.com/2018/05/03/instagram-payments/
Dinner reservation app Resy is the first to take advantage of these new features, with some of their clients' Instagram pages taking full advantage of the time-and-click-saving effort. Instagram also said they intend to roll this feature out for movie ticket purchases in the near future. We're sure there's more planned there, as well.
Instagram's update comes only a few months after Snap's opening of an in-app Snapchat Store, where users can purchase Snapchat themed clothes, plushies, and other items. While Snap's store doesn't yet allow brands to sell directly to consumers, with some exception, it isn't surprising to see it as a potential down the line.
Whether this will expedite purchasing for consumers and brands, or just be one more storefront in need of maintenance, is yet to be seen.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses three brands using eSports sponsorships to create brand awareness and target younger demographics. You may have heard your child's screams of delight and frustration while playing Overwatch, or saw them with eyes fixed on the screen watching the League of Legends World Championship, or read their tweets about a Fortnite live stream featuring Drake (or, frankly, have seen the Fornite craze in the newspaper). Whether you've heard or not, eSports are becoming a massive business and a fantastic opportunity for advertisers and sponsors to get their products and services in front of a large, typically young, audience. Charlotte Rogers on Marketing Week goes into detail the campaigns for Mercedes-Benz, Gillette, and Turtle Wax who each are seizing a piece of the eSports marketing pie.
First, Mercedes-Benz formed a partnership with the Electronic Sports League (ESL) the largest company and organizer of eSports competitions around the globe. As part of the sponsorship deal, Mercedes re-shot their "Grow Up" campaign with an eSports storyline twist for the ESL One tournament in Genting, Malaysia.
Rogers reports that, "[l]ast year there were 588 major eSports events generating an estimated $59m in ticket sales, up $32m from 2016, according to eSports market intelligence specialist Newzoo. The total prize money of all eSports events held in 2017 reached $112m, the first time it has ever exceed $100m." It's no surprise that big companies want in.
Rogers spoke with Bettina Haussmann, senior manager sponsoring, product placement and motorsports at Mercedes-Benz who said, "We are already seeing sold-out stadiums around the world, enormous prize money and millions of viewing hours of streamed material. Nonetheless, we are confident that eSports has by no means reached its full potential, so we believe it was just the right time for us to make an entry."
Gillette, on the other hand, partnered with the ESL to sponsor the IEM tournament in February. Gillette offered grooming for all players, as well as offering personalized 3D printed razor handles for fans. The brand saw this as an opportunity to reach a younger male demographic.
A 40% share of total revenues, and the biggest financial driver in eSports, is expected to be claimed by Sponsorship deals like Gillette's. Rogers reports that, "Newzoo expects eSports sponsorship deals – spanning event sponsorship, product placement and the sponsorship of professional teams – to hit $359.4m in 2018, a rise of 53.2% year-on-year."
Finally, Turtle Wax has been sponsoring OpTic Gaming's Call of Duty eSports teams in the US for three years, and is branching into sponsoring a European team, as well. For Turtle Wax, it's about the authenticity of the streamers they sponsor. Rogers spoke to Matt Chapman, Turtle Wax's European marketing controller, who said, "They’re constantly streaming and they’re OK with streaming their lives, so it comes off as much more genuine. So much so that if you think about the recent stream with Ninja and Drake, it was one of the most comfortable pieces of content. It went on for four hours and had a huge following."
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's latest tactic in the fight against fake news. Now, articles Facebook deems to be inaccurate will appear significantly smaller on the Newsfeed and appear next to fact checking links.
Tech Crunch's Josh Constine reported on the announcement which took place at the Fighting Abuse @Scale Event in San Francisco.
Facebook's previous attempts to fight fake news have been particularly ineffective. Originally, the social network flagged content it believed to be false. However, that only increased the likelihood of it being shared, I suspect because of individuals who didn't appreciate those sites being labelled as "false". Afterwards, Facebook removed the flag and began placing fact-checking articles next to the false pieces.
Their newest tactic continues the fact-checking article placement while also severely minimizing the the size of the article link. The size difference is significant with fake articles being about 10 times smaller than normal links.
Facebook also said they'll be using machine learning to better locate fake accounts and have them terminated, have groups and pages that share fake news have their ability to advertise revoked, and analyze the articles and place them in the fact-checking queue to speed the fact-checking process.
Facebook believes it can cut down the amount of fake news by 80 percent. We'll see whether this execution helps achieve that goal, or if this strategy reaches the same pitfalls as the others.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's update to their Google My Business guidelines that bans that use of review gating and filtering. Specifically, Google has added this passage:
“Don’t discourage or prohibit negative reviews or selectively solicit positive reviews from customers.”
So, what do you do now that review gating is out of the question? Respond to your clients and customers openly and honestly. It is no surprise that Google would like to paint a fuller picture of a business listing by making negative reviews available. This gives a fantastic opportunity for your business to come in and "make right". Not every customer is going to need the full nine yards of apology and service, but an acknowledgement of fault and a willingness to make the situation better certainly help.
A study by Location3 shows that businesses who respond to their customer reviews actually have a higher conversion rate in their paid search campaigns than companies that do not. Businesses with the highest response rate (8.13 percent) saw an average conversion rate of 13.86 percent. On the other hand, businesses with the lowest response rate saw an average conversion rate of 10.42 percent.
And if you continue to review gate following Google's update policies? You can expect some, or all, of your reviews to be deleted. Yikes.
Today's cast: Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses CNN's latest investigation that found over 300 brands had ads running on YouTube channels that promoted Nazism, white nationalism, pedophilia, conspiracy theories, and North Korean propaganda.
CNN reports that companies such as Amazon, Facebook, Netflix, Under Armour, and more unintentionally helped financed these channels. Many of the brands said they had no idea their ads were running on this content before it was brought to their attention by CNN, and those that did were already in talks to have it removed.
This comes following a multitude of YouTube brand safety controversies in the past. From the first wave of advertisements being run on extremist channels that resulted in some brands pulling their dollars from the platform to conspiracy videos being found in the YouTube kids app, and even various controversies caused by YouTube stars that the platform deemed safe for advertising, this is far from YouTube's first PR defense on this matter.
What surprises us the most about these brand safety problems is YouTube's unwillingness to take some form of editorial control, or at the very least, truly assert a brand safety process. Previously, YouTube has pulled or demonetized the videos of gun enthusiasts following a change in their policies that would "ban videos that offer instructions on how to make firearms and accessories such as silencers and bump stocks. It will prohibit content in which firearms and accessories are sold, both directly and through other websites. Videos on how to install firearms modifications will also be barred," according to NPR. While a ban would likely cause quite the upset, there's no reason a demonetization couldn't occur.
In fact, CNN reported that these brands were using a filter setting and blacklist to ensure that their ads were only appearing on appropriately brand safe videos. So, this process should have been occurring in the first place, but did not.
Many brands are looking to hire brand safety officers to help their business take better control over where their ads end up. Phillip points out that the Brand Safety Officer position isn't directly created for these forms of social media advertising, though it certainly helps, but for ensuring brand safety in influencer marketing and generally doing the due diligence of brand safety. You can read a fantastic write up on Chase's brand safety guidelines for YouTube on Digiday.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses publisher disappointment with Google AMP Stories, Google's offering of a Snap/Insta story equivalent in search results built through the AMP page structure. The feature released about six months ago, and made available for all publishers to test the platform in mid February. We discussed on the show previously the the potential for Google AMP Stories to potentially change the way users read stories on search results, as well as the potential SEO boosts you'd receive to your site for having these pages.
However, it doesn't seem that all has panned out as some expected. Max Willens on Digiday spoke to many publishers who felt uneasy with the progress of Google AMP Stories. The lack of monetization, as well as the inability to find stories unless using an experimental form of Google Search, means lower traffic due to the stories despite the effort being put in to create them.
Willens spoke to a Google spokesperson who said, "The purpose of the developer preview is not necessarily to drive traffic but to show what is possible with the technology and give publishers the space and freedom to experiment with this new format for visual storytelling."
Matt and Phillip explains their thoughts on solutions to make Google AMP Stories the success that Google hoped it'd be.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's acceptable ads policy update which will allow drug rehabilitation facilities to begin advertising on the platforming, so long as their ads are vetted through a service called LegitScript. Paresh Dave broke the story on Reuters on Monday, where Google told him they would begin allowing rehab centers to advertise starting July.
Dave's Piece on Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-alphabet-google-ads-exclusive/exclusive-google-unveils-vetting-process-for-drug-rehab-ads-idUSKBN1HN28X
Google typically retains high "editorial" control over the ads that can be run through their ad network, restricting ads for fireworks, firearms, and most recently bitcoin. Previously, advertising for drug rehabilitation was stopped in September due to scams and defrauders. This banning occurred just prior to the release of a piece on Verge showcasing different online scams.
Google's willingness to open back up advertising opportunities for these centers is an interesting, and positive change to the policy. Though, it won't be cheap for these rehab centers. To have the ads vetted, LegitScript "will charge $995 upfront and then $1,995 annually for vetting" according to Reuters.
LegitScript will be looking into 15 different criteria, including criminal background checks and license and insurance verification.
In the podcast, Phillip wondered why LegitScript was chosen as the arbiter of these checks. While I can't give any clear reason, it's clear their history and experience with security and big brands is certainly evident.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a major marketing mistake: half of marketers are using their terrestrial radio ads on digital radio platforms like Spotify and Pandora without creating alternatives. George Slefo on AdAge has a full report, plus the above stat that comes from a study by Edison Research and NPR. Slefo spoke to Tiffany Ray, managing director of digital strategy at Mindshare North America. "[B]ecause you can access these platforms across personal devices, your car and the connected home, there's an opportunity to engage consumers depending on how they're listening, by the device. [Yet] many marketers still put out the same generic 15- or 30-second audio ad. They treat digital audio like terrestrial radio, and that's the biggest mistake you can make."
Matt and Phillip explain one of the big differences between terrestrial radio and digital radio advertising. Terrestrial advertising requires generic spots for "shotgun blasting" to different demographics, while targeted ads are created for individual stations based on their demographics. Digital radio, on the other hand, allows more targeted messaging to reach audiences based on listening patterns, playlist themes, and playlist moods. Slefo writes, "Canada Dry launched a campaign focused on 'relaxing harder,' where the company aimed to get its message across by targeting people listening to Spotify's 'chill' playlist with audio, display and video ads, as well as commercial free 'sponsored sessions.'"
Ultimately, marketers should be giving much more thought when advertising on these digital radio platforms.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Snap publisher's woes with the latest Snapchat redesign, some saying their views have dropped by more than half. Madison Malone Kircher has the full story on NYMag, where many publishers anonymously spoke to her about their worries since the latest Snapchat retooling.
For those unfamiliar, Snapchat released a redesign to their app that aimed to separate content from user's friends and content from publishers. Previously, the content had lived one page where users could find their friend's Snap stories, and then the publisher content. Now, a page is devoted to each.
One source that Kircher spoke with said that their number of viewers increased, but their time spent on the content went down. This is due in part to Snap's automatic viewing system which queues up content from other publishers after another publisher's story ends.
A few sources also discussed their dismay with the sales team response. You may remember that Snap laid off over 100 sales and marketing team members in March, as well as over 100 engineers.
Matt and Phillip discuss the problems with Snap's redesign, as well as the worries that publishers are having.
Secondly, Tech Crunch reports that Instagram will be "borrowing" a feature from Snapchat. Instagram is testing "Nametags" which function almost identically to Snapcodes, the QR codes Snap users could scan to add on another as friends on the platform.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Bluecore's latest report on Business Wire explained the benefits of tailored e-mail marketing and what brands can do to increase their success rates. Bluecore's report, which gained "proprietary insights isolated from a sample set of more than 350 million emails aggregated across more than 400 retail clients" from October 2016 to September 2017, exemplified the following:
E-mails that show a product a consumer has already seen while "window shopping" or had already placed in their shopping carts had open rates of 40 percent.
E-mail reminders for abandoned shopping cards generated sales 2 percent of the time.
Shoppers love discounts on items they're interested in. 10% of users who received an discount e-mail on an item they were interested in click through to a brand website.
Consumers like to be reminded of technology, leisure, and food. Just under 11% of food and leisure e-mails, and just under 12% of technology e-mails results in a purchase.
Finally, Bluecore found that several e-mail marketing tactics were being under utilized by marketers. For example, "barely one in four marketers employ" price reduction or new product messaging, "[a]nd only one in ten use email to alert browsers that out-of-stock merchandise is available again."
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the two year anniversary of Facebook Live! To celebrate, Facebook released a ton of statistics on the streaming tool's success including a year over year doubling of FB Live broadcasts. Amy Gesenhues on Marketing Land has a full breakdown of Facebook's stats, which I'll list briefly below:
The number of daily average broadcasts has rise 1.5 times for verified Publisher pages.
Live videos often have 6 times the amount of engagements/interactions than with regular videos.
Since 2016, there have been 3.5 billion Facebook Live videos.
And there have been more than 150 billion reacts to Live videos.
Facebook says that hundreds of millions of people have used Facebook Live, and nearly 2 billion Facebook users have watched Live videos.
Phillip and Matt discussed what makes Facebook Live so unique compared to other streaming platforms, as well as what your brand can do to create Facebook Live content. Both ourselves and clients have had a lot of success with Facebook Live, and following the Facebook algorithm update in January it is no surprise. Reach, impressions, and interactions all lift significantly even if only doing a single Facebook live video in a month.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a recent comment from Facebook Inc. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg that most of Facebook's 2+ billion users should assume their public profile information has been compromised at some point. Katie Canales on Business Insider has a great explanation of what data could have been taken by bad actors, as well as ways that you can protect yourself from the scrapers in the future. Here's a rundown of what the minimum amount of info that can be gathered from your "Public Profile":
Name Gender Username and user ID (which is in your profile's URL) Profile Picture Cover Photo Age range (under 18, 18-21, and over 18)
What's important to remember in this discussion is how basic this information is, and how public Facebook profiles are. Facebook uses this basic information to help you see content that's age appropriate (in the case of your age), and the rest is to help users connect with one another. However, there was still one form of abuse that scammers were able to take on the system. If you had a setting that linked your e-mail or phone number to your Facebook account, and allowed other users to find you with that information, scrapers were able to tie that e-mail or phone number to the gathered information from your Facebook profile.
Facebook CTO Mark Schroepfer explained this in a blog post yesterday:
"However, malicious actors have also abused these features to scrape public profile information by submitting phone numbers or email addresses they already have through search and account recovery. Given the scale and sophistication of the activity we’ve seen, we believe most people on Facebook could have had their public profile scraped in this way."
In addition, you can find more information on ways Facebook plans on changing their privacy settings, and ways you can better protect yourself, in that same blog post.
Mark Zuckerberg confirmed these numbers in a press call yesterday, saying, "I would assume if you had that setting turned on that someone at some point has access to your public information in some way."
One thing Matt and Phillip pointed out was the basic kind of information gathered. That same kind of information could be gathered by a phone book, for example. On the other hand, the e-mail and phone number linking is a little more advanced and malicious. And the information available to be gathered increased if your profile and posts are completely public. In that case, it's safe to assume any of your information posted was able to be compromised.
Unfortunately, this is just one more example of the cost of using free services on the internet, and of posting information in a publicly available space. There is always a chance of someone taking publicly available information and using it ways you wouldn't expect (such as to send you spam phone calls).
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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UPDATE 04/05/2018: a few hours after our show went live, Mark Zuckerberg refuted Reuters' story that Facebook would not extend the GDPR privacy restrictions to all users. Facebook later clarified that all privacy restrictions, and all standards that are GDPR compliant, will take effect for all users.
TechCrunch has more information about Zuckerberg's statement: https://techcrunch.com/2018/04/04/zuckerberg-gdpr/
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Mark Zuckerberg's decision to not extend the GDPR European Union law restrictions to non-European users, which results in lesser privacy restrictions in non-European countries. Plus, Instagram is lowering the number of times developers can gain information from it's API.
In an exclusive interview with Reuters on Tuesday, Facebook Inc.'s Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg states that while he agreed with the privacy regulations set out in the GDPR "in spirit", Facebook would not be setting those restrictions as a standard. Zuckerberg told Reuters that, “We’re still nailing down details on this, but it should directionally [sic] be, in spirit, the whole thing.”
For those unfamiliar, the GDPR is a set of standards passed by the European Union which allows users to see how much information a brand/company has on them, as well as the right to have that information deleted. This also affects the way data is gathered through cookies and pixels by requiring sites ask explicit permission to do so.
Zuckerberg's statement comes at an interesting time following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, which has many looking towards Facebook and their privacy settings with a close eye. Of course, the Cambridge Analytica scandal and the data Facebook collects in regards to the GDPR are not entirely related data sets, and under GDPR restrictions Cambridge Analytica would be the one at fault (for not properly gaining consent for the information, and selling gathered information under an academic license).
Facebook is also an ad supported business, which Zuckerberg and Vox's Ezra Klein discussed in an exclusive interview following Tim Cook's critiques of the social network. Phillip explains, as we've mentioned previously, that to keep a something like Facebook running, advertisers need to be able to go off of data collected by Facebook to target their ads. As we mentioned in our special report on Cambridge Analytica scandal last week, that user data is anonymous to the brand.
Mark Zuckerberg will be appearing before Congress on April 11th, and we'll keep you updated on what we learn, and what this means for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp going forward.
Seemingly in response to the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Recode reports that the Facebook Inc. owned Instagram has reduced how much data developers can gather from it's API. The change came on Friday, seemingly out of nowhere according to sources that spoke to Recode. The rate limit was reduced to 200 calls per hour, down significantly from the previous 5000 calls per hour previously. Some developers were cut off all together.
What this effectively means is developers will have less opportunities to "ping" Instagram's servers and gather information. This will likely result in developers having to be pickier about the types of data they are gathering, rather than being able to gather as much data as they want regardless of its use.
According to Recode, Instagram was preparing to scale back the number of calls per hour starting this summer and completely transitioning to a more limited API by 2020, but began much earlier than expected likely due to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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APRIL FOOLS! We've taken this (belated) day of levity to stray away from the typical digital marketing news we cover, and instead focus on something closer to home (and frankly, much cuter). Today's Commexis Cats Daily is all about adoptable cats and what you can do to help the great people at the Voorhees Animal Orphanage. Plus, we've got tons of adorable cat footage to share with you.
For info on kitten fostering: http://www.vaonj.org/foster/ For info on volunteering: http://www.vaonj.org/volunteer/ Donation Information: http://www.vaonj.org/wishlist/ VAO's Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/38UG84UR91WCB/ VAO's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vaonjorg/?hl=en Commexis' Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/commexis1/?hl=en
In particular, we discussed the importance of foster care for newborn kittens. The orphanage environment isn't as safe for these tiny four-legged friends who are still working to build their immune systems.
This might be an April Fools show, but it's no joke how important donations, volunteering, and animal fostering is to the Voorhees Animal Orphanage. After watching the show above, check out their donation Wish List on their site or their Amazon Wish List. Even a small bag of cat food or dog chow can go a long way to making these animals happy and healthy.
Finally, take a look at our Instagram for more adorable photos and videos from our shoot with VAO, and be sure to check out their own Instagram, too!
Today’s cast: Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), Bill Romaine (VAO Feline Care Manager), and Jennifer Bailey (VAO Marketing Director).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal which involved the capturing the data of millions of Facebook users without their consent, and what that means for marketers and ad buyers on the platform.
The Facebook and Cambridge Analytica controversy began when it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica acquired data collected via the "yourdigitallife" app, a survey that prompted users to allow the app access to their personal information. The app didn't just collect information on that user, but also on every person on that user's friends list. The data was then used by political campaigns to form psychological profiles on Facebook users in an attempt to influence them. There's a high likelihood more data has been taken by other applications in a similar fashion. Facebook has since come under fire, and Mark Zuckerberg will be testifying before Congress about the stolen data. You can read a more in-depth timeline of all of the events on The Guardian.
The main focal point of today's episode is not to summarize these events, but to calm the worries of some clients who are wondering how this affects them. Here are a couple key points to keep in mind:
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Facebook's ad platform does not allow this kind of information to be gathered on users. Facebook has many guidelines, restrictions, and policies on advertisements.This includes what kind of information can be asked of a user in a Lead Generation campaign.
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Applications, such as the "yourdigitallife" quiz, are run through Facebook's API which doesn't have the same kind of restrictions. Therefore, each app has it's own set of permissions that user's agree or decline. These permissions determine how much information an application can or cannot gather on the user. Lead generation campaigns on Facebook, which ask for user information to help a service or brand get in touch with that user, are not the same thing as the applications used in the scandal.
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There may be some slowdown in Lead Generation campaigns as users shy away from entering personal information while on the social network.
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This may be an excellent opportunity for other social media platforms to strike. Snapchat, for example, is expanding it's location data services.
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Facebook isn't going anywhere. Facebook, like Google before it, has had many issues similar to this one, but we expect Facebook to comeback following the Congressional hearings.
6.There is no reason to stop spend on Facebook. Facebook is still the number one social network.
If you have any questions, feel free to send us an e-mail at info@commexis.com
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a new vulnerability in Facebook's custom audiences tool found by researchers at Northeastern University. Ginny Marvin reports for Search Engine Land that the vulnerability lies within the audience reach estimate portion of the tool. According to Marvin and the researchers there is a rounding metric within the tool. When uploading a set of e-mails that perfectly hit the center margin, the next e-mail added to the list can be used as a "victim" to determine various pieces of information about the user.
Marvin gives the example of determining gender. If her e-mail was added to the rounded list and a researcher checked "female", the list would round up. If "male" was checked, the list wouldn't move, thus determining the gender of the e-mail users. There are approximately 1,200 targeting attributes that can be determined using this method.
Phillip and Matt discuss the likelihood of someone attempting to use this data. Phillip points out that some of the date is more easily accessed in other places, and this method would require a lot of effort to obtain the information. Matt, on the other hand, argues that a bot network could easily go through and check off the different factors and thereby gather 1,200 characteristics of each e-mail provided. While this isn't quite on the scale of Facebook's current worries following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, it's certainly one more slam against the social network.
Mary Ku, product management director at Facebook, said in a statement, “We’re grateful to the researchers who found this issue, and we’ve suspended this feature to fix it. People’s privacy and security is incredibly important to Facebook, which is why we take any potential abuse of our service very seriously."
Going forward, Facebook will not be showing potential reach numbers in their custom audience tools. In addition, Facebook says they could not find evidence that their tools where used in this fashion, though they intend to investigate the matter.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses YouTube's Kids app algorithm suggesting conspiracy theory videos in the "related videos" and search results. Ideally, the YouTube Kids app is meant to allow children to access child friendly content on YouTube, while also blocking access to more "adult content". However, Business Insider's James Cook found that conspiracy theory videos are finding their way into the "related video" area of the site, as well as in specific search results such as "moon landing".
The oversight comes on the heels of an announcement made at SXSW that YouTube would be adding Wikipedia excerpts underneath flagged conspiracy theory videos. Unfortunately for YouTube Kids, Wikipedia is only helpful if you can read it. You may also remember YouTube coming under fire for the "keyword soup" controversy that showed harmful and potentially traumatizing content to children through content that would seem child friendly.
YouTube made a statement to Business Insider that you can read below:
"The YouTube Kids app is home to a wide variety of content that includes enriching and entertaining videos for families. This content is screened using human trained systems. That being said, no system is perfect and sometimes we miss the mark. When we do, we take immediate action to block the videos or, as necessary, channels from appearing in the app. We will continue to work to improve the YouTube Kids app experience."
Matt and Phillip discuss YouTube's responsibility to better moderate the YouTube Kids app, especially when these instances of abusive or misleading content are present.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the best stories of the week! We talk Chatbots, YouTube using Wikipedia to fight conspiracies, and an eMarketer report on A/B testing.
First, YouTube announced at SXSW that the company will be embedding excerpts of Wikipedia articles underneath videos that discuss, or are related to, popular conspiracy theories. It seems Wikipedia wasn't made aware of the decision, however. Katherine Maher, the Executive Director at Wikimedia, said in a tweet thread this morning (you can read the first tweet in the thread below) that the decision was made independently by YouTube. Wojciki said the Wikpedia articles, along with some other third-parties, will begin rolling out in the coming weeks.
Secondly, latest eMarketer report on a surveyed 500 marketers, and only 7% of which say they're currently using AI Chatbots for the brands. The survey was performed by Freedman International and ClickZ, and in addition to the 7%, the report says, "another 27% reported that they’re looking into using chatbots, most respondents said their company was either not ready or didn’t have the budget to develop them."
Finally, Google is testing a visual update to the Google mobile search results page.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses eMarketer's latest social forecast showing some platform shift in users ages 25 and younger. The shifts, both up and down, are hitting Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat with Twitter not mentioned in the report.
eMarketer predicts that "Facebook users will rise 0.9% to 169.5 million in 2018, driven by adoption among older age groups. However, there will be declines between 5.6% and 9.3% among users under 25, for a loss of 2.1 million." Phillip and Matt suggest that the decline in younger users could be attributed to a couple of key factors: weariness in seeing political opinions from relatives and acquaintances, the continued and increased use of the platform by the younger generations parents, and a preference of other platforms that allow users to be more "candid".
Snapchat, on the other hand, is going to see increases in younger users. By the end of 2018 eMarketer predicts that, "68.0% of internet users ages 12 to 17 will use the platform. Penetration in this age group will outstrip that of Facebook and Instagram (47.2% and 43.6%, respectively)." We've talked numerous times in the past about how effective Snapchat is for reaching this younger audience, but also how uncertain it can be using the platform without the analytics marketers want to back it up. Snap has made great strides in bridging the gap in this regard, but unless your target audience aligns well with Snapchat's, it's still unclear if Snap is a route you should be going down.
Finally, Instagram is expected to see an increase of 13.1% to it's user base which comes to 104.7 million users according to eMarketer. eMarketer suggests this is likely due to older users coming to the platform to interact with younger family members.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses YouTube's announcement at SXSW that it will be including Wikipedia excerpts alongside conspiracy videos on the platform in an attempt to offer more objective information. The efforts come in response to growing criticism of the platform and it's suggestion algorithm, which made a conspiracy video falsely accusing the Parkland survivors of being "crisis actors" the #1 Trending video on YouTube. YouTube CEO Susan Wojciki on a panel at South by Southwest Interactive festival said boxes with so-called "information cues" will begin popping up in the next few weeks.
On an interesting note, it seems Wikipedia was not made aware of the inclusion of their excerpts. Katherine Maher, the Executive Director at Wikimedia, said in a tweet thread this morning that the decision was made independently by YouTube. Some are questioning whether Wikipedia is a correct choice for this kind of fact-checking, especially given it's use by Facebook to fight fake news which we know, alongside many other factors, didn't accomplish the goals Facebook set out. Maher tweeted about the scraping of Wikipedia content for this kind of use, stating, "And frankly, we don’t want you to blindly trust us. Sure, we’re mostly accurate - but not always! We want you to read @Wikipedia with a critical eye. Check citations! Edit and correct inaccurate information! You can’t do that in a simple search result."
Wojciki said the Wikpedia articles, along with some other third-parties, will begin rolling out in the coming weeks.
Secondly, The Cast discussed eMarketer's latest report shows A/B test do not create significant statistical results. The report continued that, "According to a survey of 3,900 professionals worldwide by UserTesting, fewer than 20% of respondents reported that their A/B tests produce significant results 80% of the time." However, despite this small portion of statistical success, A/B tests can have huge positives. Jonathan Donahue, chief product officer of programmatic platform Sonobi, told eMarketer that "In some instances, A/B testing call-to-action features and ad headlines can save marketers 40% of their media budget on ad platforms like Facebook."
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's confirmation of a broad core algorithm update that took place last week. While details are scare there are clear signs of rankings changes. Google releases broad core updates "several times per year" in contrast to smaller, focused updates the company works on everyday. In typical Google fashion, however, there's isn't much to explain what exactly changed with the algorithm.
Phillip explains the history of Google algorithm updates, and more specifically why marketers only ever learn after the fact. With some small exceptions, Google isn't transparent with the information. And that makes sense. After all, Google has an invested interest in having brands use pay-per-click.
In other Google news, the search engine is testing a new design for their mobile search layout. The new layout removes the full google logo and replaces it with the Google "G" in the search bar. The results boxes are much more rounded, and seem to have a slight drop shadow to make them "pop".
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the latest eMarketer report on a survey of 500 marketers, only 7% of which say they're currently using AI Chatbots for the brands. The survey was performed by Freedman International and ClickZ, and in addition to the 7%, the report says, "another 27% reported that they’re looking into using chatbots, most respondents said their company was either not ready or didn’t have the budget to develop them." According to a report by Conductor in December of 2017, 34% of marketing executives felt that artificial intelligence was their least prepared for marketing trend.
Many brands are discontinuing all or some of their chatbot use, such as Facebook. The social media company stop using many AI chatbots when the failure rate was at 70%, meaning only 30% of inquiries could be handled by the bot without human intervention. In addition, the bots also began creating their own language. While linguistics were probably enthused, I doubt Facebook was.
Matt and Phillip discuss why exactly brands feel so unsure about chatbots, and offer specific ways you can think about chatbots for your digital transformation.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Blackberry's lawsuit against Facebook Inc. for allegedly infringing on multiple patents related to messaging apps, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
The complaint states, "Defendants have used BlackBerry’s own intellectual property to compete with it in the mobile messaging space. These applications are ever expanding, including Facebook Messenger, Facebook Messenger Lite, Facebook Pages Manager, Facebook.com and Facebook Workplace Chat, the WhatsApp Messenger application made by WhatsApp Inc., and the Instagram application made by Instagram, Inc. The importance of mobile messaging is emphasized by the reported $19 billion dollars Facebook spent to acquire WhatsApp."
Some of the alleged infringements include basics of online messaging apps, including notifications for unread messages, read receipts, and photo tagging.
Paul Grewal, Facebook general counsel, told CNBC, “Blackberry’s suit sadly reflects the current state of its messaging business. Having abandoned its efforts to innovate, Blackberry is now looking to tax the innovation of others. We intend to fight.”
Blackberry is seeking damages and injuctive relief for profit lost. However, Blackberry also seemed interested in partnering with Facebook in the future. "As a cybersecurity and embedded software leader, BlackBerry's view is that Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp could make great partners in our drive toward a securely connected future," a Blackberry spokesperson said in the statement to CNN. "We continue to hold this door open to them."
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's latest announcement integrating Google search results with iMessage and other iOS browsers. Plus, Facebook will be giving new "Breaking News" tags to 50 publishers.
First, Google search results integration into iMessage and other browsers was announced Monday on their blog. The integration will allow users to search from within iMessage, as well as find local information such as restaurants and the weather from a simple click. Users will also be able to quickly share this information with the person they're messaging, as you can see below.
Another new feature allows users to find search results related to articles or pages users are on in any browsers. The .gif below shows this in greater detail.
iOS 11 users will also have additional functionality present went using the Google App. Users will be able to "drag and drop to quickly and easily move text, images and links to and from the Google app. If you’re reading a great article on the Google app, tap and hold to pick up the link and drag it into iMessage to share with a friend, or into Notes to save for later."
If you're interested in using these new features, you'll have to make sure your Google app is up to date, or download if from the app store.
Secondly, Facebook will be allowing 50 select publishers to use a "Breaking News" tag on their posts. The tag is only usable once a day, lasting for 6 hours, and can be placed on Instant Articles, mobile and web links, and Facebook Live's. Publishers will also have 5 reserve tags each month should any breaking news happen multiple times during a day. Users will also be able to flag posts they don't believe qualifies as "Breaking News".
On average, publishers that used the new tag, such as The Washington Post, in a test from December 8th to January 14th received a "4% lift in clickthrough rate, 7% lift in Like, 4% lift in Comments, [and a] 11% lift in Shares."
For more on Facebook's "Breaking News" tag, check out their blog.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a new study analyzing the brand safety of the top 17 YouTube influencers channels, and found that a majority contain "brand unsafe" content. The study was performed and published by Delmondo, who analyzed the 25 most recent videos from the top 17 YouTube influencers using Uru's Brand Safety API. Each video was given a 1 starting score that would decrease for each strike found against it based five weighted measurements:
Unsafe objects and themes such as weapons, drugs, terrorism, and celebrity scandals;
Unsafe language such as profanities, misogyny, and hate speech; Paid or sponsored content;
Negative sentiment;
Not safe for work material (nudity and extreme violence).
The study found that about 67% of videos contained unsafe language, and 61% had negative sentiment. If you're wondering what "negative sentiment" is qualified as, don't worry, we were, too. Phillip and I discussed what negative sentiment could potentially mean, as well as anecdotal cases in the past where YouTube videos have been demonitized for having negative sounding titles.
An important statistic revolved around channels with Brand Safety Scores of .7 or higher. These channels had 38% higher average views per video and 73% higher average engagements per video. Those below the .7 threshold had 26% fewer average views per video and 51% fewer average engagements per video.
Ultimately, if your brand is thinking of pushing into influencer marketing, it is important to do detailed research into potential influencers. Does the influencer's audience and your audience align? Do our brand's thoughts align well enough with this influencer? What content does the influencer make? Do they have a history of "poor choices"? These questions, and more, will help you best determine which influencers are right for you.
You can request the in-depth Delmondo report here.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Grant Thorton LLP's latest survey on digital transformation, and the reasoning P&G's cuts to their digital ad spend.
Digital transformation is the topic of the 2018 and a new survey by Grant Thorton LLP in conjunction with CFO research found that 69% of CFO's and senior financial executives plan to increase their spending on digital transformation this year, with four out of 10 increasing by more than 10%.
One particular thing of note in the study is the lack of ROI analytics. "Still, the more than 300 CFOs and financial leaders who participated in the survey fret about measuring success: Just over 40 percent reveal that they do not have good financial metrics that show the ROI in IT efforts. And only 12 percent agree that they have an effective system of measuring financial performance associated with technology implementations." Phillip says that while the metrics and analytics aren't completely there, yet, it's clear that taking these first steps into digital transformation is pivotal for brands.
Second, P&G intends to cut their spending with big digital players by 20 to 50 percent, according to a report by AdAge's Jack Neff. The Cast discusses on quote in particular from P&G Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard: "The learning lab is also helping us stop one of the most persistent mass marketing problems -- annoying frequency. We asked ourselves: 'How often do our ads really need to be seen to be understood?' Using proprietary cognitive and behavioral science, we confirmed that it's not rocket science to remember that 'Bounty is the Quicker Picker Upper' or 'If it's gotta be clean it's gotta be Tide.' When we combined cognitive science with data and analytics, we found that the average ad frequency was three times. That was a head fake, because the averages hid the fact that too many people were being reached more than 10 times and some as many as 20 times."
Len and Phillip discuss how big name brands, such as Bounty and Tide, have the support of 40+ years of marketing helping people familiarize themselves with a brand. Therefore, the 3 ads number makes sense. For a smaller brand, or a brand just starting out, that magic 3 might not be so keen.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's latest announcement expanding feature snippets in SERPs to "multifaceted feature snippets" which aim to tackle certain search queries with multiple answers based on algorithmic interpretation. Google made the announcement on their blog, where they revealed the thought process behind the expansion of features snippets. Simply, some searches are so broad that definitive answers can't be provided. Now, Google's algorithm will take that query and interpret it into different potential questions, as you can see below.
Michelle Robbins on Search Engine Land compares this new feature to Bing's multi-perspective answers that rolled out in December 2017. Bing's search uses neural networks to show two differing viewpoints with more definitive answers. Whether Google will go this route in the future with featured snippets is unknown, but multifaceted featured snippets certainly feel like a step in that direction. Google's post goes into detail on some ways that the new snippets may be improved:
"As we shared before, we aim to expand multifaceted featured snippets to cover a broader set of nuanced queries beyond just “multi-intent” queries. For example, guidance-seeking queries like “is it worth fixing my foundation?” have several components that could be important, such as cost, duration, methods and financing. We’ll continue to experiment with multifaceted featured snippets over this year to expand coverage. "
We've talked before on the show about what featured snippets are, how they help, and what you can do to try and place as one on a search result. With the expansion of featured snippets, it seems like they're also be an increase in the ability to have your site rank as one. Here are a couple tips to help you do just that:
Think of questions your audience wants answered.
Create high-quality answers to those questions. Don’t be afraid to create a blog post with a brief answer first (which may help it appear in the search) followed by a more in-depth answers.
Answer questions your competitors aren’t answering.
It never hurts to have a Frequently Asked Questions page.
Finally, Amy gives her opinion on whether SERPs are becoming too overcrowded. She makes an excellent point that most search results that will be showcasing multifaceted featured snippets probably aren't going to be showing as many ads, so the "clout" may be significantly decreased. However, that won't stop some search results from becoming cluttered, especially on mobile search results.
Multifaceted Feature Snippets are now available on Google's mobile search with desktop use coming in the future.
Today's cast: Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Twitter's latest bot bannings which coincide with a policy update that prohibits sending the same tweet, or "liking" or "retweeting" a tweet from multiple accounts at once. The policy update hit on February 21st and comes in response to growing criticism of the platform for allowing a hive of bot accounts to pop-up over the years.
Yoel Roth, the head of API policy at Twitter, wrote in a blog post announcing the three big changes to Twitter.
Do not (and do not allow your users to) simultaneously post identical or substantially similar content to multiple accounts.
Do not (and do not allow your users to) simultaneously perform actions such as Likes, Retweets, or follows from multiple accounts.
The use of any form of automation (including scheduling) to post identical or substantially similar content, or to perform actions such as Likes or Retweets, across many accounts that have authorized your app (whether or not you created or directly control those accounts) is not permitted.
The policy change, and subsequent suspending or banning of bot accounts, "ensur[es] we stay ahead of malicious activity targeting the crucial conversations taking place on Twitter — including elections in the United States and around the world."
There is one exception to the rule, which allows "applications that broadcast or share weather, emergency, or other public service announcements of broad community interest (for example, earthquake or tsunami alerts) are permitted to post this content across multiple accounts who have authorized an app."
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses rising pressure for publishers' branded content margins, and a new study that analyzes the most important facets of branded content according to users.
First, Digiday's Max Willens reports on the ways Facebook's changes to its algorithm are having an effect on the organic reach of branded-content. Suffice to say, it's going down. And brand's costs are going up. Willens writes that, "[w]orldwide spend on branded content totaled $5 billion in 2017, according to estimates from branded content distributor Polar, up from $3.6 billion in 2016. But higher prices played a role, too. Over the past two months, the cost per click publishers pay for Facebook ads grew 16 percent year over year, per Keywee."
The increase in CPC mixed with the decrease in organic traffic is a double-whammy hitting publishers' margins. A brand either pays for their content to be seen or else you risk not having the content not being seen enough (and thereby recouping the cost). Additionally, Willens reports that brands and agencies are scrutinizing the content audience to such a degree that there can be an increased cost to target that segment.
Despite the seemingly all around increased cost of branded-content, new data showcases that it's still incredibly effect.
A new report on MarketingCharts.com details an Adobe and Anvis study showing, "the majority (57%) of respondents said that they had made a purchase in the past year as a result of valuable online content from a brand. Secondary actions taken in response to valuable brand content include sharing the content with friends and family (29% having done so) and subscribing to an email list (23%)."
Furthermore, the study found that most people prefer content that they would describe as "accurate" and "informative" over "entertaining" and "beautifully designed." Consumers did not like content that is "too wordy or poorly written," and content that isn't relevant to consumer's interests.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses publishers' worry that Google search results are too front-loaded, causing overcrowding on pages and lowering potential referral traffic. Digiday's Lucia Moses reported that while publishers have been warming to Google due to their recent changes AMP, ending first-click-free, and the willingness to work with publishers more than Facebook has, there are still some points of contention.
No, the problem isn't Google's Chrome AdBlocker. Instead, some publishers worry that the amount of information being displayed to consumers is hurting referral traffic. Google has doubled the number of characters allowed in website descriptions to 320, a significant increase in space. You might also remember our show explaining Google's guide to featured snippets. Well, these take up a lot of space, as well, especially on mobile where they can dominate the screen. Mix those changes with the other features such as built-in move time showings, maps listings, Google shopping sidebars, and ads, and there's not a lot of real estate left.
The main issue for publishers, however, are featured snippets which often answer a question in one or two sentences and discourage further scrolling. Moses spoke with Investopedia CEO David Siegel, whose site gets 60% of it's traffic from Google. But, Moses writes, "[a]ccording to SEMRush, 14 percent of keywords that Investopedia ranks for now contain a featured snippet." Google has claimed in the past that having a site be listed with a featured snippet does lead to click-throughs for more information. But if your site isn't listed, you're out of luck.
How bad is this clout for consumers? And is this something your brand has to worry about? Watch above to hear our thoughts.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Edible Arrangement's $209 million lawsuit against Google for alleged trademark infringement and unfair competition. The suit, reported by Greg Sterling on Search Engine Land, focuses on Edible Arrangements claim that when users "search for “Edible Arrangements” (or versions of that name), they’re seeing product ads for competitors, such as 1-800-Flowers."
While Sterling was unable to replicate the search results that Edible Arrangements claims is infringing, I was. Below is a screenshot of my Google Shopping page search, taken around eleven-thirty in the morning (slightly cropped so you don't have to see my 20+ open show research tabs).
As you can see, the first three results show 1-800-Flowers and only one result shows Edible Arrangements. I hadn't thought to screenshot the rest of the page, but I did count how many times Edible Arrangements and their competitors were shown. Out of the 40 listings on the search page, Edible Arrangements only had 8 slots. Most others were taken by 1-800-Flowers and similar competitors.
The Cast discusses how big of a deal this is for Edible Arrangements, as well as what the future could hold should the company's lawsuit end favorably for them. In addition, we discuss whether Edible Arrangements has found themselves in a "generic trademark" territory, with users only being able to identify their colorful fruit arrangements using their brand name.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's latest announcement that bring AMP to gmail, and AMP Stories (think Instagram and Snapchat Stories) to Google search results.
In a Google's blog post last week, Google announced the Gmail Developer Preview of "AMP for Email." The goal is to bring the same quick loading pages people are used to with AMP while offering greater functionality and customization in e-mails. Google says "you’ll be able to quickly take actions like submit an RSVP to an event, schedule an appointment, or fill out a questionnaire right from the email message." Check out a small .gif sampling Google showed in their blog.
Google is offering the AMP for e-mail spec today, with support coming to gmail later this year. If you're interested in AMP for e-mail, click here to get developer preview access.
E-mail isn't the only expansion Google has in store for AMP. AMP Stories, also announced last week in a Google Developer's blog post, give publishers the opportunity to create Snapchat/Instagram-esque stories that appear in search results.
CNN, The Washington Post, Vox, and more publishers have been involved in the early development of AMP Stories. While AMP Stories are currently in an experimental phase, we're excited to see how Google chooses to rank them in search results, as well as how monetization may or may not play a factor.
AMP Stories are available for use now, with an in-depth tutorial and other documentation available to help get web developers well on their way.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses P&G Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard's announcement that the company will not pull spending from Facebook and Google following last year's demands for change. Jack Neff on Ad Age reports that the P&G has seen enough change regarding agency transparency to be satisfied. Pritchard said, "We found we needed to build in some stronger contract language on rebates at the holding-company level."
In our discussion, Len and Phillip agreed that agencies have, for the most part, become far more transparent. Going forward, the goal will be to show clients the buyer's journey in greater detail, as well as to help clients understand the different types of campaigns and goals they need to achieve.
As far as the duopoly goes, Google and Facebook did not, Neff states, get the "Media Rating Council accreditation of their third-party audience-measurement systems yet, which is something Pritchard called for. But following a Wednesday meeting with the Association of National Advertisers board that included representatives from both of the digital behemoths and MRC CEO George Ivie, Pritchard and ANA CEO Bob Liodice both see strong progress."
Len, Phillip, and Matt discuss whether Facebook and YouTube really have done enough to lower concern for the platforms, or if only more controversy and worry has erupted in the last year. Was P&G's statements all talk when it came to the duopoly?
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Snap's attempt to nab advertisers away from Instagram by offering free ads on Snapchat, and Facebook's decline in younger age users. Kurt Wagner on Recode breaks down the specifics of Snap's latest attempt to gain advertisers. By applying online and submitting a proof of purchase from a Snapchat competitor within the last three months, you may be eligible for "credits in the range of 'several hundred dollars,' according to a source." The move is an interesting tactic, one Phillip believes offers an insight to how desperate Snap is to see more advertisers hopping to the platform. And what's a better incentive than free money? (You can check out Snap's offer for yourself by visiting their online application).
One thing that might ease Snap's nerves a bit is Facebook's expected decline in users 12-24 years old. In eMarketer's latest report, they explain that it isn't just users leaving Facebook, but an increase in users joining Instagram and Snapchat in return. Here's a quote: "In 2018, the number of US Facebook users ages 11 and younger will decline by 9.3%. Additionally, the number of users ages 12 to 17 and 18 to 24 will decrease by 5.6% and 5.8%, respectively. This is the first time eMarketer has predicted a decline in the number of US Facebook users in those age groups."
For brands wondering if Snapchat is worth their ad dollars, it seems now might be the perfect time to take Snap on their offer.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses why your brand can't tweet or make social posts about the largest international sporting event in the world, which is taking place right now in the East, and may or may not involve torches at the opening event. We're of course talking about the Olympics taking place in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
If you were hoping to show some support for the United States' team, you're out of luck. Adweek's Robert Klara explains the infamous Rule 40 found in the Olympic Charter that dictates which brands can, and which cannot, post on social media about the big event. For brands, such as us, that aren't forking over cash to the Olympic Committee your ability to post about the games is severely limited. This rule isn't new to the 2018 Olympics, however, as Sports Illustrated reported on the effects of the mandate for the 2016 Rio Olympics.
While non-Olympic related brands can't post or make advertisements with words or phrases related to the games, sponsors of the games and the athletes themselves have a little more control. Sponsors have the most, with the ability to make just about any post or ad that has been approved by the OCUS. Athletes, however, can't post about any sponsor that isn't directly affiliated with the brand. At least we can still get some cool selfies, right?
Today's cast: Len Ward (President of Commexis), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Snapchat's Q4 earnings report which shows the company beating industry and Wall Street expectations for quarterly revenue and daily user growth. Digiday's Sahil Patel has an excellent write-up of the report. Most fascinating to me is Snapchat's massive demographic engagement with Lenses. Patel quotes CEO Evan Speigel: “Every week, on average, more than half of the entire 13-34-year-old population of the United States plays with augmented reality Lenses in Snapchat.” Those are some serious numbers that Snap may be able to leverage with other brands, especially when sponsored lenses are on the rise.
Speaking of new ways to reach audiences, Snapchat will Live-Stream key moments from NBC's Winter Olympics Coverage. Variety's Todd Spangler explains that Snap has expanded it's deal with NBCUniversal for live streams of the Winter Olympics, and has "already signed deals with more than 20 advertisers that have bought sponsorships for Snapchat Olympic content, more than double the number of advertisers from Rio."
Phillip and I discuss how successful we think this coverage will be. After all, with age demographics leaning younger for Snapchat, does their audience even care about this kind of content? Either way, the live streaming partnerships is a first step in a future that may open up the doors for more live streaming potential from other brands which is certainly something to keep an eye on.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a new report that shows only 1% of publishers are affected by Google Chrome's ad blocking update.
Sarah Fischer on Axios details Google's review of 100,000 websites in North America and Europe and found that only .5% were at the "warning" level of potentially being blocked. Only .9% were at the "failing level" and would be blocked," and "Google says that 37% of sites found in violation of the Coalition's standards have already fixed their advertising issues."
The review was part of an ongoing audit that began in June 2017 to make sure publishers' ads were compliant with the Coalition for Better Ads standards, which are the guidelines Chrome's new ad blocker will follow. But have no fear ad publishers. One bad ad isn't going to hurt you, instead Google is looking to maintain a 7.5% non-compliance threshold before ads are blocked, and that threshold will shrink as time passes to 2.5%.
Chromes ad blocker comes to the browser on February 15th.
Google has also released an SEO plugin for Chrome called Google Lighthouse. Roger Montti on Search Engine Journal has a solid write-up of what you can expect. Phillip explains the 10 factors that you can expect Google to be checking with the new plugin, as well as some additional details to keep in mind.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook instant articles abandonment by nearly half of the original publishers who adopted the program. Why did they leave? How successful are instant articles, really?
The Columbia Journalism Review published a study by Pete Brown at the Tow Research Center for Digital Journalism which found 38 of the original 72 adopters of the Facebook Instant Article program in May and October 2015 had not posted an instant article over a 12 hour span on January 17, 2018 (chart below).
Chart via Pete Brown of Tow Center for Digital Journalism published on the Columbia Journalism Review. While not entirely indicative of instant articles' lack of use by platforms, this snapshot does argue a point that if instant articles were as important to these brands, one could expect at least one posting within a 12 hour our time period. In addition, the study found that, "[o]f the 2,308 links analyzed, 1,491 (around two-thirds) went to a publisher’s homepage, leaving 817 as Instant Articles."
Chart via Pete Brown of Tow Center for Digital Journalism published on the Columbia Journalism Review. Matt and Phillip discuss the reasons behind the push towards more referral traffic on Facebook pages compared to instant article postings, especially for brands with subscription services, as well as the reasons some publishers seem to be all in on instant articles.
Speaking of referral traffic, Digiday's Max Willens writes about Flipboard's success in giving publishers on the mobile reading platform just that. One passage in particular caught Phillip's eye: "Mobile referral traffic from Flipboard is up over 350 percent since May, according to Parsely, albeit from a small base compared to Google and Facebook. Google and Facebook still dominate mobile referral traffic by a big margin, and Flipboard is a distant fourth after Twitter, according to Parsely." While not a direct competitor of the large social media platforms, boasting "a monthly active user base of 100 million, less than 5 percent of Facebook’s 2.1 billion", Flipboard may be able to offer users the tailored news aggregation they want without all of the additional commentary offered by family and friends on other social media platforms.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast recaps the best stories of the week. Twitter's bot problem is coming to a head, voice assistant and voice search use are rising in public, and Google makes a comprehensive guide to featured snippets.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's featured snippets: what they are, how they're helpful, how your brand can get one, and the ways Google has messed them up in the past.
I don't need to go in depth on why Googling a question, or asking your voice assistant, is a popular practice. People want information and they want it fast. One way Google has attempted to improve their search engine is by offering featured snippets towards the top of certain search queries. Simply put, feature snippets offer the what Google considers to be the best answer in an easy to read area, no clicking required. For mobile and voice search this can be invaluable. No one wants to try and open 10+ tabs on their phone, and without the visual cues for voice search a single "definitive" answer is best.
As you can see above, sometimes answers aren't really objective. And Google's answers in the past have been less than reputable or have been wrong.
In a blog post, Google finally decided to break down the thought process behind featured snippets, as well as offering some transparency behind why certain answers are chosen over others, they gray areas of subjective answers, as well as potential fixes to these problems.
I particularly enjoyed Google breaking down the thought process behind some of their snippet choices. For example, when searching "are reptiles good pets?" or "are reptiles bad pets?" Google believes that theoretically you'd receive the same answer. After all, both questions focus on the quality of reptiles as pets. Practically, however, users do not.
Google's response to this query is an intriguing look into their algorithm: "This happens because sometimes our systems favor content that’s strongly aligned with what was asked. A page arguing that reptiles are good pets seems the best match for people who search about them being good. Similarly, a page arguing that reptiles are bad pets seems the best match for people who search about them being bad. We’re exploring solutions to this challenge, including showing multiple responses."
If your brand is looking to have content on a featured snippet, there's no guaranteed way just yet. However, there are a couple ways Amy suggests you maximize your potential.
Think of questions your audience wants answered. Create high-quality answers to those questions. Don't be afraid to create a blog post with a brief answer first (which may help it appear in the search) followed by a more in-depth answers. Answer questions your competitors aren't answering. It never hurts to have a Frequently Asked Questions page. Google will be fine tuning the algorithm for featured snippets as time passes, and are actively taking feedback on certain feature snippets, so don't be afraid to flag something that seems off.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's latest policy banning ads on the platform that promote cryptocurrencies, ICOs, and other binary options. Facebook announced the new policy on a blog post Tuesday, which give specific details to the types of ads and phrases the platform wants to be rid of.
Facebook said they want users to learn about new products on the social media site without fearing of being scammed. In the post, Facebook said "there are many companies who are advertising binary options, ICOs and cryptocurrencies that are not currently operating in good faith."
"This policy is intentionally broad while we work to better detect deceptive and misleading advertising practices, and enforcement will begin to ramp up across our platforms including Facebook, Audience Network and Instagram," Facebook wrote on their blog. The social media platform intends to return to this policy change in the future to measure its effectiveness.
Our second story for today focused on an eMarketer report on a new study that showed Instagram influencers preferring Instagram over other social media platforms.
The survey of social influencers worldwide came from influencer platform Zine which found that influencers, "favor Instagram because it provides an easy way to leverage their followings in service of brand campaigns. Generating branded content can be as easy as posing with a product, especially ones that have a strong visual appeal." The survey also found that only about half of respondents used the #ad or #sponsored hastags in their post, which certainly leaves some room for improvement.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses New York attorney general Eric T. Schneiderman's plan to open an investigation into Devumi, a company that sold fake follower bots on social media sites like Twitter. The New York Time's Nicholas Confessore reported on the attorney general's plan Saturday, following another Times report by Confessore alongside Gabriel J.X. Dance, Richard Harris, and Mark Hansen.
The piece by the four Times writers is an in-depth investigation into Devumi that looks at company financial records and found various celebrities and influencers using the service to gain followers, sometimes over 750 thousand at once. We highly suggest you click the link above and check it out.
Matt and Phillip discuss what lead to the prevalence of Twitter bots on the platform and the danger of being able to forcibly push influence. For example, the Times investigation showed that a tweet by Clay Aiken (below) had 5,000 followers bought through Devumi to retweet the grievance. What is stopping a user or brand from doing this for a hastag?
The Cast also discusses what Twitter is doing, and should be doing, to help alleviate this issue and regain brand's trust in the platform.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses a new study by Stone Temple that shows people are more open to using voice assistants in public than last year. Greg Sterling on Search Engine Land does a great breakdown of study, which shows that while people are still much more likely to use voice assistants in their home while alone, there has been a solid increase in individuals using voice in public.
In addition, about 16% of people use voice search as their first point of contact when making a search query (mobile came ahead with 44% behind search bar searches at 18%).
As the individual's preference for voice continues to grow, so too do the opportunities for advertisers to market their services using the features of voice assistants, or to advertise directly on some services. An eMarketer report from December 2017 shows just how willing some people would be to hearing ads through their in-home voice assistants. The answer: quite low.
While the user opinion towards direct advertisements on these platforms seems low, the ability to appear in the search results of questions asked by users can still be just as relevant as it is normally on the web, especially with the increased use of voice services. In that same eMarketer report, they state that the "number of voice-enabled digital assistant users in the US will grow from 60.5 million this year to 75.5 million by 2019." Furthermore, "nearly nine in 10 people who had a voice assistant talked to it every day, while one-third said they used it more than five times per day."
As voice grows, so too will the platforms ability to help businesses. We'll keep you up to date on voice assistants and voice search going forward.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's change to its branded content policy which is aims to clarify what is acceptable branded content and what is an ad. Marketing Land's Tim Peterson defines what branded content is, and what it can turned into. "In theory," Peterson writes, "it refers to an article or video that a brand paid a publisher or creator to produce or star in and to distribute to their audience. However, in practice, it can simply be an article or video that a brand paid a publisher or creator to distribute to their audience; it may not even be content but instead a link to a product page on a brand’s e-commerce site, making something that was already closely related to an ad now all too identical to one."
Facebook's goal, then, is to fight this form of influencer/publisher ad fraud. Facebook added the following line to it's content policy: "Don’t accept anything of value to post content that you did not create or were not involved in the creation of, or that does not feature you."
Going forward, Phillip and Matt hope this will cut down on the amount of misleading advertising on Facebook (and potentially instagram). The enforced use of #ad on Insta saw a rise in influencer marketing
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Apple's foray into B2C communications with their business chat features on iMessage. Sarah Perez on Tech Crunch reports that the feature is set to debut this spring, "with launch partners including Discover, Hilton, Lowe’s and Wells Fargo." Apple will be facing steep competition in Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp's business app, Google, and Twitter all of which businesses use to reach their customers. Messenger and WhatsApp in particular are utilizing payment options for brands, which Apple says users will be able to do, as well, using Apple Pay.
The Cast dives into what this means for the buyer's journey. With a myriad of different options, is iMessage business support just an additional box that need's checking for B2Cs? And what potential does this give Apple going forward?
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast is all about Chatbots. From implementation to early successes on Facebook Messenger, chatbot use is growing at an incredible rate. Digitally transforming your businesses using burgeoning technology can be intimidating, but we've got the information to help set your mind at ease.
Columnist Jay Baer on Martech Today writes three things you'll want to keep in mind while implementing chatbots to enhance the user experience. The most important takeaway from Baer's piece is to remember that chatbots are a tool, not a means to replace customer service employees to save some cash. The success or failure of your chatbot integration can hinge on a lack of strategic thinking and unwillingness to spend resources on it. You'll also want to remember that its the user experience you're trying to curate. Baer writes, "Chats should offer better customer experiences, with tools that keep customers informed throughout the process. The technology must respect consumers’ time in a world where it’s one of the most valuable commodities available." If you use chatbots merely as an alternative to the typical customer service experience, you're setting your business up for failure.
eMarketer has an excellent chart showcasing areas where chatbots are less preferred by users, and many where human interaction could be replaced by a chatbot. The information below, however, isn't meant to scare away brands in the fields that see a higher preference for human interaction. Rather, brands should take this data into consideration when thinking of how they may use chatbots. While a person may not want a bot to help them receive medical information, they could prefer to schedule an appointment that way.
Finally, some chatbot success. Facebook has been allowing brands and businesses to use chatbots since the launch of Facebook Messenger 2.0 in April 2017, and Rachel Wolfson of VentureBeat reported some major successes at the time of release. Sephora, for instance, saw "an 11 percent increase in booking rates through the Sephora Reservation Assistant" and "an average spend of over $50 from clients who have booked an in-store service via its Messenger assistant." SnapTravel and Tommy Hilfinger are also among the chatbot successes.
Digital Transformation can be a tricky subject with many forms, but when considering the use of chatbots its clear that the user experience trumps everything else.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast details how the latest Facebook news feed algorithm is cutting into publishers branded content revenue, and how this will affect your favorite video content on the platform. Digiday's Sahil Patel spoke with four publishing sources who said that they have a "50-70 percent margin on custom branded videos they distribute on Facebook after paying for production and paid media." In addition, obtaining sponsors for videos already in their pipeline offers revenue with no extra cost.
With the new Facebook changes, however, publisher's content is going to become increasingly less frequent on user's news feeds. To combat this, Patel writes that brands will likely have to sponsor their content through campaigns to ensure it ends up in front of users. As we mentioned last week in our Facebook Live, this "pay-to-play" model is going to become much more mandatory than before, and will cut into a publisher's bottom line.
Publishers do have other alternatives, however, including Facebook Watch, encouraging more organic growth and sharing of content between friends and family, and diversifying beyond Facebook. That said, for smaller publishers and creators, some of these options are going to be less viable than others. It will be difficult to grow an organic audience, for example, if you're not getting eyes on your content via a sponsored post. The Cast discusses these diversification challenges, as well as options for moving to Instagram, YouTube, and even Twitch.tv and what challenges exist on these platforms.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses two security issues you'll want to be aware of: malicious redirect ads being placed on high-profile sites like the New York Times, and Google's looming security certification deadline.
First, Steven Melendez's reports on Fast Company regarding malicious ads appearing on sites like The Atlantic and the aforementioned New York Times. Users are finding that when reading these sites on mobile, they are occasionally redirected to another mirror site that plays fake ads. You can find examples below (credit to @joshsternberg and @anildash, respectively).
Most of Melendez's piece explains programmatic advertising, but there are a few interesting numbers on the use of ad blockers, something ad buyers are saying might increase as malicious ads continue to spread. "PageFair," Melendez writes, "which studies adblocking, said in a 2017 report that adblocking usage had grown 30% during the previous year." Ad blocking doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon, The Cast questions whether third-party ad blocking extension use will go down following Google Chrome's February 15th release of a built-in ad blocker.
Second, MediaPost's Laurie Sullivan reminds marketers of Google's upcoming deadline that will see Symantec-issued certificates in Chrome become distrusted. This change could cause some sites that continue using these certificates to have issues showing to users, if they appear at all.
In a letter to MediaPost, Sharti Shunn, the digital marketing strategist at Vizion Interactive, said the changes would have three effects on advertisers. Sullivan summarized that pages may send trigger warnings to users about the trustworthiness of the site, ads could be removed from paid-search programs if their landing pages have this Symantec issue, and finally HTTPS will be a must lest pages receive ranking decreases.
This Chrome update is slated for release sometime in March or April,
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's upcoming "Speed Update" which will have mobile site speed play a direct role in a page's rankings. Google announced the update in a blog post yesterday with a scheduled release of July 2018. The company wrote, "The 'Speed Update,' as we’re calling it, will only affect pages that deliver the slowest experience to users and will only affect a small percentage of queries. It applies the same standard to all pages, regardless of the technology used to build the page. The intent of the search query is still a very strong signal, so a slow page may still rank highly if it has great, relevant content."
And at the end of the day, site speed is all about the user experience. In their blog post, Google links to a Thinking With Google study that showcased "[t]he average time it takes to fully load a mobile landing page is 22 seconds, according to a new analysis. Yet 53% of visits are abandoned if a mobile site takes longer than three seconds to load." With only 7 seconds to grab a user's attention before they bounce, Google hopes these algorithm changes will encourage brands to speed up their web presence.
Matt and Amy breakdown what this new update means for your business going forward.
Today's cast: Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses YouTube's changes to its Partner's Program that are meant to ensure better brand safety for advertisements on the platform. AdWeek's Lauren Johnson reports that the YouTube Preferred Partners Program, which has seen major controversies in the past, will now have each second of each video vetted for adherence to the site's guidelines. All videos globally will be vetted by March, Johnson writes, with videos in the U.S. being vetted by February.
That's not the only change Google is making to YouTube. Channels hoping to monetize their videos must have at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time to qualify for the Partner Program. YouTube says that 99% of users affected by this change made less than $100 a year on the platform, though that hasn't stopped some small creators from worrying.
In addition, YouTube will be rolling out an ad buying system with three tiers. Johnson writes, "One option caters to brands that are sensitive about where their ads appear. On the other end, a broad-based option lets brands buy ads across a bigger section of videos. The middle option—which is the default option—plays between, with targeted ads that still reach a significant number of channels."
So, what do these changes mean for your business? The Cast breaks down exactly what you should and shouldn't be worrying about with this change, and what to expect going forward.
Our second story for today: One in nine online accounts are opened fraudulently, writes Maria Deutscher on Silicon Angle. ThreatMetrix's latest report details just how common fraudulent accounts are in wake of the Equifax breach, and how likely someone is to have their online accounts hi-jacked. Definitely click the link for some eye opening numbers.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast was live on Facebook, discussing the social media platform's dramatic algorithm change that could completely change the way your business does social media marketing.
Last night, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook's algorithm was changing to show more posts from a user's friends and family, and much less content from business pages, in an effort to increase user interaction. One of the reasons behind this shift is the mental well-being of the user base. Zuckerberg wrote in his Facebook post: "The research shows that when we use social media to connect with people we care about, it can be good for our well-being. We can feel more connected and less lonely, and that correlates with long term measures of happiness and health. On the other hand, passively reading articles or watching videos -- even if they're entertaining or informative -- may not be as good." You can read Facebook's full explanation on their blog.
This announcement comes after repeated criticism that Facebook isn't doing enough to fight fake news, the lukewarm accomplishments of the Facebook Journalism Project (a goal of which was to fight fake news), and co-founder Sean Parker calling Facebook a "social-validation feedback loop".
Zuckerberg stated in his announcement that he expects "the time people spend on Facebook and some measures of engagement will go down." A new report by CNBC seems to agree with this sentiment. Zuckerberg continues, "[b]ut I also expect the time you do spend on Facebook will be more valuable. And if we do the right thing, I believe that will be good for our community and our business over the long term too." A different report by CNBC states that Facebook may have a stock increase of 20% going forward due to these changes.
Facebook's blog post contained a few suggestions of ways to keep user engagement high, and thereby increase you're likelihood of appearing higher in the News Feed. Here's a small excerpt: "Page posts that generate conversation between people will show higher in News Feed. For example, live videos often lead to discussion among viewers on Facebook – in fact, live videos on average get six times as many interactions as regular videos. Many creators who post videos on Facebook prompt discussion among their followers, as do posts from celebrities. In Groups, people often interact around public content. Local businesses connect with their communities by posting relevant updates and creating events. And news can help start conversations on important issues."
While major change is coming to the Facebook News Feed, Facebook advertisements seem to be untouched, which suggests Facebook will soon become much more "pay-to-play". So, you can wipe that worried sweat off your brow for now.
Watch the video above for more of our thoughts on the algorithm change, as well as what to look out for going forward with your social media plan.
Today's cast: Rebekah Milsted (Commexis Social Media Manager), Hannah Magann (Commexis Social Media Intern), and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses how Amazon plays into the buyer's journey, and how ad retargeters are sneakily trying to gain consent from users in the advent of the GDPR regulations being enforced in May.
A new study by Feedvisor surveyed 1,500 Amazon buyers found that "Amazon is often the first place consumers go to conduct product research: 44 percent of all respondents always check Amazon prices before purchasing a product from another brand or retailer site." In addition, the study found about 85% of Amazon Prime users check the site everyday. Phillip and Matt examine the numbers and breakdown the why's and the how's.
Finally, the General Data Protection Regulation is set to be enforced in Europe in May, and will bring a need for ad retargets to gain consent from users before being able to obtain and track their website data. Ross Benes on Digiday explains the way Criteo and AdRoll are attempting to do this, though Benes reports that not everyone thinks the companies are doing it right: "Ari Paparo, CEO of programmatic bidding firm Beeswax, said there’s no way the tactics of Criteo and AdRoll meet this standard. He called their attempts to gain consent 'ridiculous.'"
Commexis will keep you in the loop on how, if at all, this will affect U.S. clients going forward.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Snapchat's leaked daily active user metrics as reported by The Daily Beast, and Google PageSpeed Insight's latest upgrade.
Taylor Lorenz' piece on The Daily Beast showcasing leaked Snap metrics has made the rounds in the news today. Lorenz' report dives deeper into the culture of Snapchat, and the paranoid secrecy of Snap CEO Evan Spiegal, and makes for a fantastic insight into the company that keeps most numbers close to the chest. That said, some statistical gems are sprinkled throughout. For example, the daily active users of the Snap Map feature peaked at 35 million in June, and dropped 40% by September, with only 11% of users checking it daily. A brighter number: 34.5. That's the number of minutes spend per day on the app in September, compared to Insta's 32 minutes for its younger demographics.
There are more juicy numbers at the bottom of Lorenz' article in the graphs (check out one below).
Finally, Google PageSpeed Insights has been upgraded to use real user data from Google Chrome browsers. Barry Schwartz reports that sites are now graded on Fast, Slow, and Average, and Google will offer speed optimization suggestions based on your site. Check out his article for more on these changes, and look below at Schwartz' screenshot of the tool in action.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the success of advertising in coloring book apps! From Lionsgate to Kellog's, brands are getting amazing engagement rates compared to other forms of advertising. Ilyse Leffreing on Digiday reports that "branded coloring books on Recolor" a popular coloring app, "see an average engagement rate of 10 minutes. For comparison, the average engagement rate of a custom interactive ad is 43.7 seconds." More often than not, these brands are using banner ads that give users video content to watch, followed by additional coloring book pages.
If those metrics weren't enough, many brands are drawn (pun intended) to these types of advertisements due to the typical user demographic: women in their 30's. In addition, coloring apps top the iOS App Store claiming 11 spots in the Top 50 most downloaded apps, and for December making up 5 of the top 6 most downloaded apps. The Cast offers their reaction to this "off the beaten path" type of advertising.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), Anthony Finuoli (Commexis VP of Creative) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the frequency of trackers on websites, Facebook's "5 Graphs to Change the Way You Understand Mobile Video---and TV", and lukewarm progress the Facebook Journalism Project has made.
First, eMarketer's latest report details just how prevalent third-party ad trackers really are. The data, which comes from Cliqz and Ghostery, "loaded over 144 million web pages in over a dozen countries and found that 77.4% of all websites had at least one third-party tracker."
Furthermore, 16.2% of sites had 10+ trackers. The worry is that overloading a site with trackers can drastically reduce load times and site performance. Phillip explains how site owners are going to need to keep a tight leash on just how many trackers they're using.
Second, the Cast discusses Marketing Land's Tim Peterson's breakdown of Facebook's latest blog post on "5 Graphs to Change the Way You Understand Mobile Video---and TV."
As you can see, the non-skippable pre and mid-roll ads seem to have the highest success compared to the other portions of Facebook mobile video advertising. But there's an important note: this data is based on watch time, not completion rate, and we can't see any numbers. So, how useful is this data, really? The Cast weighs in.
Finally, the Cast discusses Lucia Moses' piece on Digiday on The Facebook Journalism Project's lukewarm first year.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses rumors that Amazon is in talks with brands to allow some voice search advertisements on their Alexa platform, as well as other potential avenues for voice based marketing.
CNBC is reporting rumors that Amazon may soon allow for brands to advertise natively on the B2C company's Alexa service. Advertisers had tried in the past to advertise on the platform using Alexa skills, which Amazon swiftly shutdown. The aftermath the new rules allowed only radio streaming and news brief skills to play advertisements to customers, and only if those ads didn't involve interactivity with Alexa or use Alexa's voice feature. But now, Amazon may be changing their tune and aligning their new ad strategy with something that mirrors their current, non-search history based, approach:
"There are already some sponsorships on Alexa that aren't tied to a user's history," CNBC reports. "If a shopper asks Alexa to buy toothpaste, one response is, 'Okay, I can look for a brand, like Colgate. What would you like?'"
Seeing where these voice advertisements go, and how the consumer will feel about being advertised to through their voice assistant, is yet to be seen.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the announcement of the release of Google Chrome's ad blocking update in early 2018, influencer marketing requiring "authenticity", and video being 61% of mobile app marketing.
There's been a lot of discussion earlier in the year about when Google Chrome's ad blocking update will hit the browser. Yesterday, Google announced February 15th as the release date for the update. Ads will be blocked based on violation of standards set by the Coalition for Better Ads (CFBA). This includes "autoplay videos with automatic sound and prestitial countdown ads, which are full-page takeovers that activate before entering a site." If you're uncertain if your ads are meeting the conditions, don't fret. According to AdExchanger's James Hercher, "[b]eginning in January, the [CFBA] will certify publishers and supply-side networks that agree to abide by the standards and block ads to those that don’t" using their Better Ads Experience Program.
Aaron Baar on MediaPost breaks down new research from CITE Research, commissioned by Olapic, that discusses consumers' desire for "authenticity" in influencer marketing. Baar explains, "42% said 'authenticity' was a top reason for trusting an influencer," though that may make brands who wish to control their message more a bit uneasy. For those brands, however, it's important to remember that "nearly a third (31%) said they have purchased a product or service based on social influencer content. Additionally, nearly a quarter said they have made a recommendation based on a post." So, maybe letting an influencer have a little leeway isn't too bad of a thing.
eMarketer's Rahul Chadha shares new data from Ad Colony that shows nearly 61% of app install marketing budget was spent on video. Specifically, "most of that—30%—was directed toward full-screen video, while 24% of app install ad spending went to social video. In-feed video accounted for substantially less than either of those, at 7%." Check the full stats in the image below. For those working on app advertising, these numbers are hard to ignore.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Twitter's stock prices rising by over 20% from a new report by J.P. Morgan, who cites livestreaming potential as a major force. Plus, Twitter debuts the first 24/7 news network on the platform, and the important of digital transformation.
Twitter's stock has risen following a new report by J.P. Morgan classifying the social network as "overweight" from its neutral position on Monday. The report details many reasons behind the new classification, including the popularity of live streaming services, as well as expected user and revenue growth in 2018. On the same day, Bloomberg launched Tic-Toc, the first ever 24/7 news live stream on Twitter. Users can watch the livestream and see a curated feed of tweets from reporters and the audience all in real time. How does this change the perception of Twitter for advertising and social media use, and what can we expect in the future? The Cast weighs in.
A report by the International Data Corporation shows that digital transformation spend is forecasted to reach $1.8 trillion by 2018. "The industries that will invest the most in digital transformation in 2018," the report states, "are discrete manufacturing ($214 billion), professional services ($133 billion), process manufacturing ($132 billion), and transportation ($127 billion)."
You can also read more from Brian Solis on Digital Transformation by clicking here. And read eMarketer's report, as well as listen to their podcast, by clicking here.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's decision to end their "first click free" policy for publishers. Plus, 5 ways to maximize your video strategy on Facebook, and new stats on using Instagram to reach millennial women.
Marketing Land's Ben Barokas details the end of Google's "first click free" much to the delight of publishers. Now, the decision of whether or not to paywall content, and how to do so, will be completely in the publishers hands. And with that, Barokas comments, "almost a fifth of online users are willing to pay for an ad-free browsing experience, according to Nielsen Media Labs, it is increasingly evident that alternative models of compensation — such as subscriptions — are gaining popularity and are set to shape the future of digital media consumption."
Second, Aubrie Richey on AdWeek offers give tips to maximize your video use on Facebook. From simply making sure you're shooting vertical to planning a video for each step of the buyer's journal, Richey covers everything you'll need to kick start your video campaign.
Finally, AdWeek's Katie Richards has new formation from Bustle about targeting the millennial women demographic. Namely that 40% say Instagram is the best way to reach them. Shocked? Don't be, as 91% say social media in general is the best way reach this audience. Social media is a vital tool in a marketer's toolbox, and Richard's piece shines some useful light on the subject.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the integration of tweet threads into Twitter's native UI, Instagram allowing users to follow hashtags, Facebook Watch and Facebook Marketplace's slow growth, and Pinterest tops the 3rd most used search engine.
People love them, but on desktop tweet chains, threads, or storms (pick your poison) are a nightmare to read. With that in mind, Twitter now has a dedicated Tweet thread button, allowing users to quickly chain together their tweets. In addition, users can now easily read tweet threads by clicking a "show thread" button beneath a tweet in that thread. Twitters expansion of it's platform from a 140 character micro blogging site to 280 character thread site has been met with some success, but does this dilute Twitter's original purpose? Phillip voices his concern.
Marketing Land's Tim Peterson details Instagrams latest feature: hashtag following. Users can now follow a hashtag in the same way they follow a person or business, allowing curated posts from that tag to appear in their feed. The feature isn't open to advertisers yet, but it could become quite a hit in the future.
eMarketer's latest report dives deep in the problems facing (no pun intended) Facebook Watch and Facebook Marketplace. According to the survey conducted by RBC Capital Markets, 7 in 10 users never use the Marketplace tab, and 8 in 10 never use Watch. Is Facebook muddying the waters of their service, or is this just a slow start? The Cast weighs in.
Finally, when you think of Pinterest you probably think of cute DIY crafts or tantalizing recipes. But did you know that it's also the 3rd most used search engine behind Google and YouTube? For more on how to use this platform to its fullest, Marketing Land has a great write-up.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Wired's report on e-mail trackers: their prevalence, the usefulness, and the unexpected dark side of the data. Plus, traditional advertising is still an importance piece of the puzzle in a growing digital world.
Wired's Brian Merchant explains the rise of embedded e-mail trackers in correspondence, and the users aren't just businesses, but friends and family, too. 269 billion e-mails are sent everyday, Merchant explains, and over 40 percent of those contain trackers. Merchant warns that scammers could use the data gathered from these trackers (Time Opened, IP Address, Location, Type of Device That Opened the E-mail) for nefarious purposes beyond stealing your identity. The Cast weighs in on whether this is as big a threat as Wired makes it out to be, or if this is just one more thing to be aware of in our connected world.
Aaron Baar on MediaPost breaks down a recent survey that found, "more than 1,000 consumers in the U.S. by business-to-business ratings and reviews firm Clutch advertisements influence 90% of consumers to make a purchase, and many are doing so after seeing or hearing an ad on TV (60%), in print (45%), online (42%) and on social media." Phillip and Len explain Commexis' focus on maintaining a balanced strategy that can contain traditional avenues of advertising, when appropriate.
Finally, AdWeek has released their 10 Best Ads of 2017. Some personal favorites include Burger King's "Bullying Jr." and Instagram's "Stories are Everywhere". Click the link and check out some fantastic work in the industry.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) with special guest appearance by James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses eMarketer's latest report on cross platform video ad spending. Plus, the dangers of non-disclosure influencer marketing.
eMarketer's latest report dives deep into omnichannel video ad spend, revealing some interesting thoughts and eye-opening numbers. The rise of ad share budget spend on cross-platform tv/video has risen 4% since last year. Not to mention the sheer number of simultaneous internet & TV users, which is expected to jump 20+ million by 2019.
Finally, programmatic ad spend for cross-platform video is expected to increase, as well, taking up 75% of video ad spend total.
The Cast weighs in on what all of these changes mean, and what you should start thinking about for your digital marketing campaign.
Finally, Jonathan Crossfield on Content Marketing Institute relays the dangers of non-disclosed influencer advertising. According to Crossfield, "55% of respondents say a #socialmedia page is more believable than ads via @EdelmanPR survey." We discuss the reasons behind this believability, including the importance of being personable in branding and social media.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Visa new "signature sound", a sound that will play during transactions in store and after online and mobile purchases. Plus, Wish.com's viral Facebook Dynamic Ad mix-up.
Alexandra Bruell on the Wall Street Journal reports that after a year of development, Visa is debuting their new signature sound this coming year. The sound was the chosen out of 200 contenders with the criteria of being "energetic and optimistic and not overly intrusive." The sound will also play on Google Home and Alexa devices. You can read more about just how much time and effort went into designing this new sound. What does this emergence of a signature sound mean for voice assisted purchasing in the future? The Cast weighs in.
Countless businesses use Facebook ads, but not all are as hardcore as Wish.com's use, according to The Daily Beast's Taylor Lorenz, with the company having spent over $100 million on Facebook ads alone in 2015. However, Facebook Dynamic Ads are creating quite a problem for the e-commerce site, as unintended products are appearing on their ads, some of which are inappropriate in nature. While a fun story to read, rest assured that most businesses won't have to contend with the issues Wish.com did. That is unless you're selling tongue shaped soap or hamster leashes. Then we can't help you.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses YouTube's Year of Year decline in video ad spend compared to OTT services such as Hulu and Roku, and brand safety issues may be a cause. Plus, Google PLA impressions rise 42%!
Digiday's Yuyu Chen breaks down reasons why YouTube's video ad spend has declined 9%, citing a multitude of recent YouTube controversies as a potential culprit with YouTube finding it's own way to help ease the mind of ad buyers. In addition, more video ad spend is being sent to OTT services such as Roku, Hulu, and Amazon. Are YouTube's mishaps really the cause of this decline, or is the growing popularity of OTT services to blame? The Cast weighs in.
Black Friday is a hit for retail and e-commerce alike, and Google was no stranger to success. Laurie Sullivan on MediaPost writes that, "Product Listing Ads rose 42% year-over-year from Thanksgiving Day through to Cyber Monday," for Google with revenue rising by 35%. Perhaps due to this surge, Google is releasing new features for its Google Manufacturer Center that launched in 2015.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's latest testing with pre-roll ads for Facebook Watch, and amazing numbers on the Duopoly's ad growth for 2018. Digiday's Shareen Pathak breaks down Facebook's experiments with pre-roll ads despite the company's prior distaste for the ad type. The goal is to potentially reduce the amount of views lost to mid-roll ads which many publishers are receiving complaints about from watchers.
Alison Weissbrot on AdExchanger dives deep on Google and Facebook's projected ad growth for 2018. The industry is expected to grow, Weissbrot explains, to about $535 billion by the end of this year, and Google and Facebook’s current share of global digital ad investment, excluding China, sits at 84%. Here's an excerpt on what this means for your business:
“Brands need to learn to live with Facebook and Google,” said Jonathan Barnard, head of forecasting and Zenith. “They and their agencies need as strong a partnership with these two platforms as possible. We don’t see anything to challenge that at the moment.”
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast recaps the best stories from this week's show. Adobe predicts over $20 billion revenue generated from e-mail marketing this holiday season, co-viewing on streaming services opens doors for brands that'd otherwise be closed, and you use your phone 47+ time a day.
First, Adobe predicts over $20 billion will be generated from e-mail marketing this holiday season. Jess Nelson dives into the findings on MediaPost, which include predictions "that online sales will increase 13.8% year-over-year to $107.4 billion, with Cyber Monday becoming the largest online shopping day in history with $6.6 billion in sales."
Second, eMarketer's latest report shows how powerful co-viewing can be for brands advertising on an OTT service. Rimma Kats explains that "over half (56%) of respondents who co-view OTT content said they talk about the products and brands they see. And nearly as many (45%) said they would change someone else’s mind about a product or brand they see during a co-viewing session." This is good news for brands looking to get their message out there on the Hulu's of the world.
Finally, eMarketer and MediaPost breakdown Deloitte's latest "Global Mobile Media Survey" on mobile usage. eMarketer reported "most people check their device approximately 47 times per day" with younger audiences checking their phone 86 times per day. The Cast share some anecdotal evidence that maybe these numbers are much higher than they seem. And to no surprise, smartphones are almost always by a consumers side when shopping, and doing various other activities.
MediaPost's Tanya Gazdik focused on the mobile carrier statistics in her Deloitte write-up. "Sixty-three percent of consumers have visited a carrier store in the last year," she writes, "making retail stores an important connection to the mobile consumer, and almost one in five consumers has visited a carrier story in the last month." In addition, "[n]early two-thirds of consumers still replace their phones every two years, despite the lack of device subsidies," the study states.
These numbers are great for business, but what do you need to go forward? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses eMarkter and MediaPost's breakdowns of Deloitte's latest "Global Mobile Media Survey" on mobile usage. eMarketer reported "most people check their device approximately 47 times per day" with younger audiences checking their phone 86 times per day. The Cast share some anecdotal evidence that maybe these numbers are much higher than they seem. And to no surprise, smartphones are almost always by a consumers side when shopping, and doing various other activities. Check the image below for more.
MediaPost's Tanya Gazdik focused on the mobile carrier statistics in her Deloitte write-up. "Sixty-three percent of consumers have visited a carrier store in the last year," she writes, "making retail stores an important connection to the mobile consumer, and almost one in five consumers has visited a carrier story in the last month." In addition, "[n]early two-thirds of consumers still replace their phones every two years, despite the lack of device subsidies," the study states.
These numbers are great for business, but what do you need to go forward? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Mozilla's move to break its contract with Yahoo, the power of co-viewing on OTT devices for brands, and LinkedIn's new career advice service.
TechCrunch's Frederic Lardinois reports that with Firefox's latest update, Mozilla has terminated their five year contract with Yahoo in favor of using Google as the default search engine for the platform. Because of this break, Google will now be the default search engine for Firefox in most of the world, with the exception of countries like China and Russia.
eMarketer's latest report shows how powerful co-viewing can be for brands advertising on an OTT service. Rimma Kats explains that "over half (56%) of respondents who co-view OTT content said they talk about the products and brands they see. And nearly as many (45%) said they would change someone else’s mind about a product or brand they see during a co-viewing session." This is good news for brands looking to get their message out there on the Hulu's of the world.
Finally, LinkedIn has launched a free career advice service today on it's platform. Users will be able to select the type of advice they want to receive, or give, and matches will be created based on mutual interests, brand awareness, and more. The communication in the peer-to-peer mentor program will be all done through LinkedIn's messaging platform, making contact even easier. Len and Phillip discuss how this service might help some individuals not only make connections, but give helpful job advice and expectation management for job seekers. Speaking of which, Commexis currently has two jobs open for applications on the platform, a Chief Branding Officer and an Account Coordinator, so apply now!
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Snapchat adding context cards to it's sponsored filters and lenses, Facebook's Events app is getting a rebranding, and e-mail marketing is expected to generate $20 billion this holiday season.
Following Snap's painful third quarter earning's report, Snap has unveiled their latest advertising opportunity with the expansion of context cards. Business Insider's Alex Heath explains more. Originally, context cards allowed users to swipe up to gain more information on the places they saw in their friend's snaps, given that the friend was using a business geotag. Now, context cards are coming to sponsored filters and lenses, which will allow businesses to advertise beyond "word of snap", as well as track ROI from the associated links.
Facebook is taking a shot at Yelp and Foursquare with the launch of Facebook Local, a redesign of the Facebook Events app. Tim Peterson on MarketingLand breaks down all the features of the app, including searching through Facebook's event listing, RSVP-ing to events, and more. Will this help Facebook gain more traction, or is it another app in a sea of similar offerings? The Cast weighs in.
Finally, Adobe predicts over $20 billion will be generated from e-mail marketing this holiday season. Jess Nelson dives into the findings on MediaPost, which include predictions "that online sales will increase 13.8% year-over-year to $107.4 billion, with Cyber Monday becoming the largest online shopping day in history with $6.6 billion in sales."
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Snapchat's third quarter business report. Following $443 million lost in the quarter, and stock continuing to fall, Snap turns to an app redesign. Rahul Chadha on eMarketer theorizes Snap may borrow some redesign ideas from Tencent, the owner of China's most successful messaging app WeChat which had 903 million daily active users in September, given Tencent's increase in share buying. An app redesign might help Snap significantly, as it currently stands at second lowest used social platform ahead of Twitter.
Digiday's Ilyse Leffreing spoke with 21 Snapchat ad buyers to find the shortcomings of the platform, and what changes they hope for in the future. The consensus: stick to the 13-34 age demographic, which Snap reaches about 70% of in the U.S., France, UK., and Australia. Phillip and Len go in depth on why trying to widen Snap's base too much will hurt them in the long run.
Finally, MediaPost's Laurie Sullivan writes how fake reviews influence consumer buying habits by much more than one would think. She writes, "About 25% of survey participants admit to reading 'a lot' of fake reviews, but 84% admit to not always being able to spot them. For the 14% of people who admit they can never spot fake reviews and the 16% who don’t know how to identify them in particular, fake reviews create problems when determining the authenticity of a review."
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the latest study from Pew Research Center revealing that 45% of Americans get their news from Facebook, LinkedIn and Microsoft are teaming up to help craft resumes, and Facebook has unveiled a budget optimization tool. Marketing Land's Amy Gesenhues breaks down the specifics of the Pew study which finds that 67% of Americans getting their news from social media overall. In addition, the next leading social site for news is YouTube at 18%, and then Twitter at 15%.
Facebook has unveiled a brand new budget optimization tool in Facebook business blog post Wednesday. Facebook said, "advertisers can set one central campaign budget to optimize across ad sets by distributing budget to the top performing ad sets in real time. Campaign budget optimization is available for any campaign objective and is best suited for campaigns with multiple ad sets."
Will this replace a PPC specialist, or merely help lighten the load? The Cast weighs in.
Finally, Miscrosoft Word has added a LinkedIn resume assistant plug-in to the word processor, allowing users to get help crafting their resumes, as well as see job listings all in-app. The assistant will gain insight from millions of LinkedIn member profiles and show how real professional describe their own jobs, which is sure to be a hit. Coincidentally, Commexis is currently hiring a Chief Branding Officer and a Digital Account Coordinator, so this is the perfect opportunity to try out Word's new update.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook Messenger's website plug-in beta launch, as well as the latest upgrades which allow for retargeting ads and sponsored messages. Tech Crunch's Sarah Perez explains all the new features of Facebook Messenger's website plug-in, now in closed beta. The service will allow users to interact with brands through an on-site Messenger window, and have all of the features that have been added such as payments, bots that understand natural language, and more. In addition, conversations will carry over into the Messenger app and Facebook desktop application, allowing more uninterrupted brand interaction. You can sign-up here to be notified when the changes go public.
But that's not all the Messenger news! Allison Schiff on AdExchanger gives more details on the cross platform potential of Facebook messenger's latest 2.2 update. Brands will be able to retarget customers based on information gained while the user was using the Messenger app on their site, as well as send sponsored messages to users who have had previous interaction with the brand through Facebook Messenger. Schiff continues, "Out of the 70 million businesses with a presence on Messenger, more than 20 million use the platform to actively communicate with their customers," so expect B2C businesses to gain serious traction and conversions with this tool.
Plus, Twitter has officially doubled the character limit of tweets from 140 to 280. The company stated some of the reasoning was to allow languages with longer sentences structures to better convey information. Whether that's true or not, if we're lucky, maybe this will reduce the number of painstakingly long tweet chains. Here's to hoping.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's two latest measurement errors and what that means for your ad dollars, mobile sponsored content read rates, and Musical.ly's rising popularity with advertisers. MarketingLand's Tim Peterson breaks down Facebook's 11th and 12th measurement errors since September 2016. Peterson explains the errors, which involve mobile video ads playing when the user isn't looking on Facebook's mobile site, and a similar experience for some slow loading instant articles on Android phones. How much does this hurt Facebook's credibility? The Cast weighs in.
Laurie Sullivan on MediaPost gives numbers on mobile sponsored content's increased read rates based on a study by Pressboard. Previously, 66 seconds was the average read time, but now numbers have increase to 79 seconds. While 13 additional seconds doesn't sound like a long time, it certainly signifies an upward trend of sponsored content reading.
Finally, the app Musical.ly is seeing some success with branded influencers hoping to target the ever elusive 10-20 year old demographic. The app, which allows users to make lip-sync videos to their favorite songs, has been gaining traction for it's user engagement by brands such as Disney Channel UK and KitKat. For more, check out Yuyu Chen's piece on Digiday.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses eMarketer's latest numbers on branded content headlines and the average cost of a mobile app user. Rahul Chadha reports that the clickthrough rate of headlines with 90-99 characters was 0.43% higher than those with fewer letters. How will this effect your content marketing, if at all? Phillip breaks down whether this info is helpful to your campaign or not.
Mobile apps are still a hot ticket for many business, and eMarketer's Rimma Kats explains how much money a company will have to spend to get the users they want. For example, an app install of an app might only run $4.12 per user, but the average cost of a user signing up for a subscription in-app is $162.22 per user.
Plus, Sahil Patel on Digiday has a list of some of the most interesting comments heard at the Digiday Video Anywhere Summit. From shots fired at Facebook, to hopeful optimism for the future, there's sure to a be a comment that will surprise you.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses the rampant numbers revolving around influencer ad fraud, and Amazon's latest roaming marketing tactic coming to a city near you. Digiday's Shareen Pathak reports reports that "a single days worth of posts with #ad or #sponsored contained 50% or more of fake engagement, " with only about 1/5th of total engagement coming from real people. Check out her break down for even more eye-opening stats. Plus, Andria Cheng follows Amazon's Treasure Truck in her eMarketer article. Is this a mainstay for Amazon, or just the latest marketing tactic? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's Q3 earning's report, which declares a 79% profit jump from last year despite the Russian ad controversy. The Wall Street Journal's Deepa Seetharaman reports that Facebook plans to "double the number of employees and contractors who handle safety and security issues to 20,000 by the end of 2018," which could cause Facebook's "expenses [to] rise as much as 60% compared with 2017." The hope is this will reduce the amount of bogus accounts and bad actors from using the platform, which Facebook is currently dealing with in a Congressional hearing. How much will this cut into Facebook's bottom line in 2018? The Cast weighs in. Plus, Ross Benes on Digiday has a breakdown of video ad fraud.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses rumors of Amazon entering the pharmaceutical industry, and Google's latest local search upgrade. AdAge's Adrianne Pasquarelli reports that health care companies are looking for new ways to stay relevant as rumors of Amazon's entry into the pharmacy spread. How will this shake up the health care industry? The Cast weighs in. Plus, Laurie Sullivan reports on MediaPost that Google will begin using location data to fuel local searches, replacing the URL identifier.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast details the importance of digital transformations for growing your business and staying competitive. Marty Swant's latest piece on AdWeek breaks down what big brands are doing to not only stay relevant in an Amazon e-commerce world, but to continue to innovate. Plus, eMarketer's newest report shows Facebook dominating the last-click playing field for social media sites, as well as the multi-touch realm with the social platform being listed as the primary influencer nearly 1/3 of the time.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google's continued success, and Twitter's improvements in their earning's reports. The Wall Street Journal's Jack Nicas and Laura Stevens reported on Google's explosive growth, reaching a 33% increase in profits in the third quarter. Twitter publicly revealed they had miscounted their total user numbers for the last three quarters, thrown off by third party apps, but still had more success in the third quarter with only a $21.1 million loss compared to last year's Q3 loss of $103 million, reports WSJ's Georgia Wells. And in news no one is surprised to hear, eMarketer's latest report shows that millennials prefer digital communication over speaking face-to-face. In fact, almost 75% of millennials in the United States preferred digital communication over speaking in person.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Amazon Key, the pitfalls and the triumphs, as well as the eCommerce site's effectiveness as an ad platform. eMarketer's latest report shows that Amazon is the fifth largest generator of digital revenues in the U.S.. Also, Amazon announced their latest product Amazon Key to a lukewarm response. Amazon Key will allow package deliveries inside your home, as well as access for friends, family, or in home-services, such as cleaning or dog walking.
Plus, some agencies are speaking out about Facebook's service reps. A new piece on Digiday by Yuyu Chen describes Facebook reps as unresponsive, and in some cases side-stepping agencies to try and deal directly with brands. What does this mean for Facebook? And should agencies be worried? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Snap's shift to programmatic advertising for their Snapchat shows, and Google begins replacing the first-click attribution model. Digiday's Sahil Patel reports that Snap will begin using programmatic advertising in its shows following some lackluster results filling in the ad space. How much will this help Snap gain ad dollars against other social platforms? The Cast weighs in. Plus, MediaPost's Laurie Sullivan reports that Google Attribution has been rolled out to thousands of marketers. The new tool hopes to eliminate the first click attribution model used in the past.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Buzzfeed News Media Editor Craig Silverman's latest report on an ad fraud scheme that affected over 100 brands such as P&G, Unilever, Hershey's, Johnson & Johnson, and more. The scheme involved using "zombie sites" that had little to no appeal for humans, but that when visited by a bot using a special URL would initiate what's called "ad hell", where ads would continuously play over and over with some playing multiple at a time. The article states the scheme could have stolen about $20 million this year. Plus, The Cast breaks down the latest piece by Digiday's Lucia Moses, which focuses on frustrations with auto-play video. What does this mean for companies hoping to create better user experiences? We weigh in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses fake news ad fraud affecting Snopes and Politifact, as well as potential Russian use of ad platform Outbrain. The New York Times' Daisuke Wakabayashi and Linda Qui report that Google Ad Sense placed fake news ads onto fact checking sites Snopes and Politifact. The sites stated that they had no ability to alter what ads displayed on their site through Google Ad Sense. The Cast lays out what this means going forward. Plus, Craig Silverman reports on Buzzfeed that content recommendation ad network Outbrain will begin investigating whether Russians used the platform to spread propaganda.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses fake news ad fraud affecting Snopes and Politifact, as well as potential Russian use of ad platform Outbrain. The New York Times' Daisuke Wakabayashi and Linda Qui report that Google Ad Sense placed fake news ads onto fact checking sites Snopes and Politifact. The sites stated that they had no ability to alter what ads displayed on their site through Google Ad Sense. The Cast lays out what this means going forward. Plus, Craig Silverman reports on Buzzfeed that content recommendation ad network Outbrain will begin investigating whether Russians used the platform to spread propaganda.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Apple's latest update to Safari, which aims to hinder the effectiveness of third-party tracking software. Marketing Land's Tim Peterson reports that Facebook's ability to track web visits on third-party pages has been reduced due to the browser update, which might spell trouble for advertisers. And Ross Benes on Digiday tells of publisher woes with the new app, some of which have lost 10-20% of their CPM going into the 4th quarter due to the update. What does this mean in the broader picture? And what should you do in the advent of these changes? Phillip and Len tell all.
Tim Peterson's article on Marketing Land: https://marketingland.com/apples-anti-tracking-tool-restricts-facebooks-ability-follow-people-around-web-225876
Ross Benes' piece on Digiday: https://digiday.com/media/publishers-already-feeling-pain-apples-move-ad-tracking/
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a story by Digiday's Shareen Pathak on DSW's use of influencer marketing. Other companies, such as Pinterest, are creating new initiatives to connect influencers and brands, as well. But some studies suggest that influencer marketing is rife with ad fraud potential. Is influencer marketing the next big thing, and will it work for our brand? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Ellen Bryon's report on the Wall Street Journal about retailers new targeted demographic: the 26-year-old millennial. These new homeowners are a different breed from their Gen X counterparts and often hit life milestones at a slower pace than previous generations. With extracurricular activities, video games, and other factors affecting their ability to learn certain home maintenance and improvement skills, many retail stores are creating video tutorials to answer simple questions. The Cast breaks down just how effect this has been for the retailers, and how important video can be for your business.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Digiday's four burning issues for digital marketing on mobile. Plus, many marketers are growing fonder of Facebook and Google and blaming ad tech on industry problems such as ad fraud.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Facebook's latest announcement to stop questionable ads. The Wall Street Journal's Georgia Wells reports that the social media company will be hiring 1,000 new workers next year to review ads, though the platform will still count on users to flag questionable content. Is 1000 enough? Phillip and Len explain their worries. Plus, a new article on Digiday by Sahil Patel shows that some publishers feel their CPM for Facebook mid-roll ads is much lower than it should be.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses new data on 2-second video ads. Ad Age's Garrett Sloan reports on a study done by Oracle in conjunction with Facebook that found 2-second video ads actually led to increased traffic. Phillip and Matt explain what this means for marketers hoping to make more effective video ads. Lucia Moses on Digiday interviewed publishers who are looking beyond Facebook for other user interaction and engagement. Phillip details the reason for their move, and why Facebook is a must for any small and medium size business. Finally, The Cast touches on Advertising Week New York and the importance of transparency.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Amazon's latest announcement for their Echo product line. eMarketer's Search Marketing 2017 report shows that 69% of US smartphone owners used voice-enabled technology for online searches. Phillip and Matt dive deep into the usage of these voice assistant devices, as well as their potential buying power.
Martech Today's Barry Levine reports on Salesforce opening Data Studio, the companies B2C marketplace of second-party data, to the public, and Kelly Liyakasa on Ad Exchanger details Nielsen's acquisition of indie attribution vendor Visual Q. The Cast breaks down what effect they believe this will have on the marketplace, and whether or not this stops the Big Data deluge.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist)and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Twitter's latest change! The platform is testing out a new character limit, potentially saying goodbye to 140 characters and hello to 280 characters. Is this a great boon for marketers, or will it result in longer winded toxicity on the platform? Phillip and Len break it down. Plus, The Wall Street Journal's Austen Hufford reports that Facebook and the NFL have struck a deal for exclusive replay content on Facebook's Watch platform. Will this deal offer anything new for NFL fans? Len gives his thoughts.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses some announcements and comments from Advertising Week New York! Instagram hits 800 million monthly active users, and Google's vice president of agency and media solutions calls this advertising era "The Age of Assistance". Plus, Len and Phillip remark on Mark Zuckerberg's trip for a Philly Cheesesteak.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses a new report by on Business Wire by First Insight about Millennial's in-store buying habits. Does the journey for the best deal increase brick-and-mortar traffic? Phillip let's you know. Plus, MarketingLand's Laura Collins writes on reducing ad fatigue, and our Paid Placement Specialist James Van Horn explains some new Facebook features for just that.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist).
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Today's Commexis Cast discusses Google and Facebook's increasing success, surpassing even their own expectations. eMarketer reports that digital ad spend on the platform totals over 60%. Plus, Marketing Land's Tim Peterson reports that Facebook will begin targeting ads based on physical location visits. Who will this change be good for? Len and Phillip dive into the options.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) .
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On today's episode: The Cast discusses Spotify's new self service ad platform. AdWeek's Lauren Johnson reports that the new service will allow users to upload scripts and have voice-overs created automatically. How will this help small and medium sized business? Len and Phillip give you the details. Plus, Tim Petereson on Marketing Land explains Facebook's shift to more human elements to review to their ad targeting options. How will this effect Facebook? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) .
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
On today's episode: The Cast disccusses a shift in the marketing news landscape, which now focuses more on social and paid advertising as opposed to SEO. Len and Phillip explain that with marketers having so many toys to play with, SEO isn't the only thing people should be paying attention to. Plus, Google's push for quality web experiences for users.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) .
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
On today's episode: The Cast discusses Burger King's newest Snapchat ads shot entirely on Spectacles, as reported by AdWeek's Christopher Hiene. Kevin Tran has a write-up on Business Insider about YouTube's success with 6-second ads. Are 6-second ads the way of the future or just filling a niche? Phillip and Matt weigh in. Finally, Phillip breaks down an article by Jennifer Slegg on The SEM Post on why most Google algorithm changes aren't worth worrying about.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
On today's episode: Apple's plans for Safari on mobile to block third-party tracking software, the rise of wearables such as the Apple Watch, and uncertainty about iPhone X's facial recognition software.
The Wall Street Journal's Alexandra Bruell and Jack Marshall report that ad trade groups are protesting the change to the mobile version of Safari. Phillip suggests that the truth to the browser change is less altruistic than it seems. The International Data Corporation's study shows wearable technology is steadily increasing which begs the question: are the Safari changes necessary when people give their data freely to wearables? Finally, USA Today's Jefferson Graham and Edward C. Baig have an excellent write up on the wins, the woes, and the worries about iPhone X's facial recognition software. How secure is it? What does this mean for the future of your personal information? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Strategist) and Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
On today's episode: The Cast discusses the expiration of Amazon's "1-Click" patent, as reported by Marketing Land's Greg Sterling. What does this mean for Amazon going forward? And will this expansion of the 1-Click purchase help reduce shopping cart abandonment? The Cast weighs in. Second, a new report by Yes Lifecycle Marketing shows that personalized e-mails double unique clicks, yet only 98% of e-mails in the study used this technique. Phillip and Len dive deep on how easy personalized e-mails are and why you should be using them. And for our final story, the WPP argues that Facebook and Google should be regulated by the government. How likely is this? Len explains why it's just a fantasy.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
Join the Commexis team as we add context to these stories for the busy CMO. All the news you need to know–from our inbox to yours.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses the rise of online video, both in ad spend and on social media engagement. First, Quartz's John Detrixhe reports that mobile internet ad spend will increase dramatically to about $75.7 billion collectively from 2016 - 2019. Second, eMarketer reports new data from social media analytics company NewsWhip showing a 53% increase of engagement on Instagram videos for big brands year over year. The Cast breaks down what this means for your business trying to get a foothold on Instagram. Finally, YouTube has rolled out new 6 second ads targeted towards advertising. The hope is for more advertising to come to YouTube despite the rise of other online streaming such as Facebook Watch. Will YouTube's plan be successful? Are these 6 second ads powerful enough? Len and Phillip weigh in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
Today's episode: Google's Ad Words policy changes in the advent of the iOS11 release. MediaPost's Laurie Sullivan reports that the changes will make last click attributions expire after 24 hours. What does this mean for data analysis going forward? How will this shift how advertisers spend their marketing dollars? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), James Van Horn (Commexis Paid Placement Specialist), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
Today's Commexis Cast discusses the latest Facebook controversy. AdWeek's Marty Swant reports Facebook's audience numbers are larger in certain age groups than U.S. census numbers. What does this mean for Facebook's credibility? The Cast weighs in. Plus, Len dives into a survey reported by eMarketer's Monica Melton, which shows teen's notice and dislike far more ads on YouTube than on other social platforms.
Today's Commexis Cast discusses Verizon's new plan to give users rewards such as concert tickets and phone upgrades in exchange for their personal data. Mashable's Jason Abbruzzese reports that the Verizon Up program will be replacing the Smart Rewards program in a transparent twist. Plus, the Cast comments on AdWeek's Lauren Johnson's article on LinkedIn's plan to advertise natively on Microsoft's Outlook e-mail platform.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
Today's Commexis Cast discusses an AdWeek article by John Stevens on the importance of SEO in Social Media Advertising. Plus, Monica Melton of eMarketer analyzes Astound Commerce's report on consumer's preference to buy from brands. Millennials, in particular, preferred dealing directly with brands in 7 out of 8 categories over non-millennials. What does this mean for brands looking to advertise? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
Today's Commexis Cast discusses an article from AdWeek's Christopher Heine about potentials for white ops bot blockers for programmatic advertising. Advertising holding companies such as Omnicon and WPP have come together to form The Trade Desk in hopes of reducing bots and potential ad fraud. Will this help in the long run? And should you put your advertising dollars into programmatic advertising? Len and Phillip have the details. Plus, Google is testing out new features in Google Maps, according to Search Engine Land's Barry Schwartz.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
In today's episode: The Cast discusses an interview on Marketing Land by Greg Sterling with Astound Commerce, who released a new report showing consumers prefer dealing directly with brands rather than through retailers. Plus, the Cast comments on a New York Times article by Sapna Maheshwari's about Fox's experiment with 6 second ads during the Kid's Choice Awards. Could 6 second ads help the NFL's viewership ratings, or is 6 seconds just too short? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
On today's episode: The Cast discusses a report by Digiday's Lucia Moses on Google Chrome's built-in ad blocking update, what worries some marketers, and what you can expect. Plus, Len comments on AdWeek's George Slefo's article on Yelp's new partnership with data management platform Live Ramp, as Yelp hopes their ad sales for the platform grow.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
On today's episode: Facebook just announced a plan to block ads from pages that repeatedly spread fake news. Phillip and Len discuss Facebook's three key tenants of the plan, what this means for Facebook's ad revenue going forward, and more. Plus, Matt highlights a few key sections of Snapchat's Content Chief Nick Bell's comments at the Edinburgh Film Festival, by Hollywood Reporter's Georg Szalai.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
On today's episode: Phillip and Amy discuss an article by The Wall Street Journal's Laura O'Reilly about Google offering refunds to their advertisers over fraudulent ads. In addition, Google plans news protections to hopefully prevent fraud in the future. How much will this help fight fraud? And will this help the little guys, too? The Cast weighs in.
Today's cast: Phillip Brooks (Commexis Lead Digital & Creative Strategist), Amy Leach (Commexis SEO Project Manager), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster).
On today's episode: More than 50% of digital media time is spent on mobile apps, according to a comScore's 2017 US Mobile App Report. And yet, app development seems to be coming to a slow. What does this mean for the future of apps? Len and Phillip dive in. Plus, WPP's revenue loss might have more to do with transparency than originally thought.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
On today's episode: Reports of revenue decrease from top level digital marketing agencies is sending a wave of unease throughout the industry. But is the source of the issue really digital marketing's fault, or rather a cavalcade of underlying issues coming to a head? Tune in to hear our thoughts and more.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Lead Digital & Creative Strategist).
On today's episode: Digiday reports that Snapchat's focus on appealing to younger demographics is making beer brands less willing to spend their marketing dollars on the platform. The brands cite a lack of confidence in ensuring advertisements are gated only to those 21 and older, and the Cast ponders what the future holds for Snap in other 21+ focused industries.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Digital & Creative Strategist).
On today's episode: Phillip offers an informative retort to yesterday's story regarding NBCUniversal's ad-chief Linda Yaccarino bashing digital marketing. Plus, eMarketer reports that Facebook's monthly active users between the ages 12-17 are likely to decline 3.4% in the US this year. What does this mean for the platform, and for more age friendly apps like Snapchat? We discuss this, and more!
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Melissa Shaine (Commexis Manager of Branding & Account Coordinator), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Digital & Creative Strategist).
Mobile gaming advertisements are on the rise with expected growth of $49 million in 2018. King, the owners of the Candy Crush franchise, plan to reintroduce ads to their mobile games, a departure from their removal of ads four years ago. Plus, NBCUniversal ad-sales chief Linda Yaccarino bashes digital advertising in her latest speech.
Today's cast: Len Ward (Commexis President), Melissa Shaine (Commexis Manager of Branding & Account Coordinator), Matthew McGrorty (Commexis Videographer/Podcaster), and Phillip Brooks (Commexis Digital & Creative Strategist).